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| LETTER TO THE EDITOR |
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| Year : 2022 | Volume
: 15
| Issue : 3 | Page : 445 |
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Academic concerns of undergraduate female medical students of Delhi
Priyanka, Manish Kumar Goel, Sanjeev Kumar Rasania
Department of Community Medicine, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Associated Hospitals, New Delhi, India
| Date of Submission | 24-Nov-2020 |
| Date of Decision | 05-May-2021 |
| Date of Acceptance | 20-Jun-2021 |
| Date of Web Publication | 07-Mar-2022 |
Correspondence Address:
Priyanka
Lady Hardinge Medical College and Associated Hospitals, New Delhi - 110 001
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/mjdrdypu.mjdrdypu_645_20
How to cite this article:
Priyanka, Goel MK, Rasania SK. Academic concerns of undergraduate female medical students of Delhi. Med J DY Patil Vidyapeeth 2022;15:445 |
Dear Sir,
Medical education in India is witnessing major reforms. Competency-based learning includes designing and implementing medical education curriculum that focuses on the desired and observable ability in real-life situations. This involves incorporating appropriate teaching–learning strategies, tools and techniques of teaching, and modes of assessment. Efforts are made to encourage integrated teaching among traditional subject areas using a problem-based learning approach and skill-based assessment.[1],[2]
To understand the students' perspective about medical education, we invited the students who cleared their final MBBS examinations, to share their feedback about their perceptions about medical profession, academic concerns, and also their suggestions regarding making medical education more student-friendly. Most of the students perceived the profession to be respectful and were more concerned about serving people rather than earning money. However, they also felt that the profession is stressful, less rewarding, and very challenging.
Regarding the graduation course, they were concerned about the teaching as well as assessment methods used. Long one way theory classes, poor teacher–student relationship, and stressful repeated tests were the main areas pointed out by the students. They also mentioned that there is more focus on attendance and marks obtained rather than actual learning. Majority of students felt burdened by the lengthy curriculum and very long duration of the course. They reported feeling fatigued because of daily hectic and monotonous lifestyle and limited opportunities for extracurricular activities. Few students also mentioned language barriers in understanding lectures, which are exclusively delivered in English.
The students further suggested the changes in teaching–learning methods to facilitate learning process. They were in favor of more interactive sessions, group discussions, and shorter theory lectures with frequent breaks in between. They emphasized that there should be more focus on skill-based practical learning. They felt the need for a friendlier student–teacher relationship, teaching in smaller groups, bilingual teaching for better understanding, integrated teaching, and assessment based on skills acquired. They were also of the opinion that there should be more focus on extracurricular activities in medical colleges.
We found that all these concerns and suggestions are important and valid. Most of these issues have already been taken up by the Medical Council of India. This shows that the reforms suggested by MCI under competency based medical education program are also the felt needs of medical srudents. We hope that these modifications will train the medical students to become the much needed and competent Indian Medical Graduate, as desired by these guidelines.[1]
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
| References | |  |
| 1. | Medical Council of India. Competency Based Undergraduate Curriculum for the Indian Medical Graduate. Vol. 1. New Delhi: Medical Council of India; 2018. p. 11-20.  |
| 2. | Medical Council of India. Assessment Module for Undergraduate Medical Education Training Program. New Delhi: Medical Council of India; 2019. p. 1-29. |
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