Quality Medical Education Key to Better Patient Healthcare

High-quality medical education is crucial for ensuring the quality of healthcare that patients receive. Medical education provides future healthcare professionals with the necessary skills, knowledge, and competencies to deliver safe, effective, and patient-centered care. Academic medical centers play a vital role in promoting quality in healthcare by providing high-quality medical education, conducting research, and delivering high-quality patient care. These centers serve as models for other healthcare institutions and foster collaboration among healthcare professionals, contributing to improved healthcare quality.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), quality of care is the degree to which health services for individuals and populations increase the likelihood of desired health outcomes.  It is founded on evidence-based professional knowledge and is critical for achieving universal health coverage. Quality healthcare can be defined in many ways but there is growing acknowledgement that quality health services should be:

• Effective – providing evidence-based healthcare services to those who need them;

• Safe – avoiding harm to people for whom the care is intended; and

• People-centred – providing care that responds to individual preferences, needs and values.

Medical and health sector education is that part of the education system that applies educational philosophy, theory, principles and practice in a complex relationship with clinical services, where education usually is not the primary role. While the goals are clear, to produce the health workforce that society needs to improve health outcomes, both education and healthcare systems continue to evolve concurrently amid changes.

Education for health professions occupies a unique niche within the broader education system, intricately linked to the healthcare system. Unlike primary and secondary education, health sector education is embedded within the clinical environment, where educators must navigate the dual demands of delivering high-quality patient care while fostering the development of future healthcare professionals. The relationship between health sector education and the healthcare system is often characterized as symbiotic. However, this relationship is complex, and the needs of learners, patients, and society may not always align. Effective health sector education requires a nuanced understanding of these competing priorities and a commitment to balancing the needs of all stakeholders.

To optimize health sector education, educators and healthcare leaders must encourage interprofessional collaboration and learning to promote a culture of safety and quality care. Also, they must design curricula that address the complex needs of the healthcare system, preparing learners for the challenges of clinical practice and providing educators with the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively teach and mentor learners in the clinical environment.

By acknowledging the complexities of health sector education and working to address these challenges, we can ensure that future healthcare professionals are equipped to deliver high-quality, patient-centered care that meets the evolving needs of society.

The quality of medical education is essential for several reasons. The first is that it ensures that healthcare professionals have the necessary skills and knowledge to deliver safe care and avoid medical errors, but it also provides healthcare professionals with the competencies necessary to deliver effective and patient-centered care. This contributes to improving the health of the population by providing healthcare professionals with the skills and knowledge necessary to prevent, diagnose, and treat diseases effectively. And last, it generates confidence in the healthcare system, which is essential for the relationship between patients and healthcare professionals.

The Mexican Association of Medical Schools and Faculties has implemented an incremental quality model in medical education, which classifies medical schools into different stages based on their level of compliance with quality standards. This model consists of five stages: Initiation, Development, Standardization, Innovation, and Sustainability. This model serves as an institutional evaluation, allowing each medical school to identify its level and progress toward innovation and sustainability in all dimensions, including student competence, learning strategies, institutional aspects, and linkage with healthcare.

High-quality medical education has a direct impact on the quality of healthcare that patients receive. Healthcare professionals who receive high-quality education are better prepared to deliver patient-centered care, apply scientific evidence, work in teams, and improve the quality of care. Academic medical centers play a fundamental role in promoting quality in healthcare by providing high-quality medical education, conducting research, as well as delivering high-quality patient care, and importantly, fostering collaboration among healthcare professionals. It is essential to prioritize the quality of medical education and support academic medical centers to ensure that healthcare professionals are prepared to deliver high-quality care and improve the health of the population.

Healthcare institutions are facing technological, epidemiological, and social transitions that alter the needs and problems of society in terms of health. Therefore, it is essential that educational institutions and healthcare providers commit to improving and seeking excellence in the formation of responsible physicians who can safeguard the health and quality of life of the population. To address this context, institutions must commit to incorporating quality systems that impact internal processes and all stakeholders, including students, faculty, patients, and society.