Training medical students for the real world
CHALLENGES faced by medical students and doctors are well documented.
They must be equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to provide holistic healthcare.
Head of School for the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences (JCSMHS) at Monash University Malaysia (Monash Malaysia) Prof Dr Shah Yasin shares how medical students are prepared for the realities doctors face.
Private hospital engagement: For the last three years, medical students at JCSMHS engaged with private hospitals over the course of their undergraduate degree.
“We have a number of private hospitals which actively take our students,” shared Dr Shah.
“These include Sunway Medical Centre, which hosts the largest number of our students, Tropical Medical Centre, and the Darul Ehsan Medical Centre.”
In private hospitals, students can tap into the knowledge of highly experienced specialists who have at least 10 years experience.
They also shared that they have easier access to specialists, many whom are keen teachers, at private hospitals.
In comparison to public hospitals where doctors attend to about 40 patients in the morning, students may see less than 10 patients at a private hospital.
Dr Shah explained that the leisurely pace allows time for specialists to address questions from students.
Doctors and patients also find students helpful.
Students are able to assist doctors and specialists in tasks, including sourcing for information from the latest journals.
Additionally, student doctors are well received by patients.
With hospitals being a lonely place for some patients, medical students offer companionship, which lift patients’ moods and improve their well-being.
Students also sometimes act as information bridges for patients who are reluctant to ask specialists questions that trouble them. The response from private hospitals regarding the presence of medical students in hospitals is encouraging.
According to Dr Shah, a survey conducted by the university in hospitals where students were posted for their internship found that to date, patients have not refused students attending to them.
Pre-intern posting: The university’s Year 5 programme is a pre-intern, or pre-housemanship year, but with additional academic requirements.
“The programme consists of six blocks, each lasting six weeks,” he explained. “Our students are attached to a consultant for each block.”
Students do these six pre-intern postings in different places, with two compulsory postings in Australia and four locally, including one in Segamat Hospital, Johor.
While students are supposed to behave and work as interns, they do not take on the full responsibilities of one.
These postings give them a sampler as it exposes them to various environments, including the Australian healthcare system, a rural hospital, a private hospital and a large public hospital such as the Sultanah Aminah Hospital, where they also need to complete a patient safety module.
The module is an important curriculum that deals with the importance of ensuring patients’ safety, such as the correct way of transporting critically ill patients.
With the rising life expectancy in Malaysia and an ageing population, there is an increasing need for geriatricians.
In one block of the programme, students will take on aged care.
The posting is completed in Australia and will introduce them to services targeted towards the ageing population.
There is also another block on indigenous care, which focuses on the health of the indigenous people, who have unique health issues and the worst health outcomes compared with the general population.
It is believed there are many parallels in the social and health issues of indigenous people around the world.
In Malaysia, students will also look into health issues of the orang asli, both in the hospital and through orang asli community visits in their pre-internship programme.
Dr Shah explained that rural hospitals differ from public hospitals as there are fewer services and specialists.
It is important for students to acquire a broad range of experience to prepare them for such postings.
Through the holistic approach to education, Monash Malaysia has produced well-rounded undergraduate medical students who benefit from learning a wide range of issues, including the healthcare system and work culture in Australia to the social determinants of health.
Visit www.med.monash.edu.my for more information on the medical programme at the Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, at Monash Malaysia.