Design and Validation of Clinical Education Curriculum Pattern Based on Social Accountability for General Medicine Course: A Mixed Method Study

In the social accountability of the curriculum, all medical education activities are aimed at training doctors who are able to meet the health needs of society. In Iran's medical education system, there is a weakness in responding to the needs of society, and the connection between students and society has gradually weakened. The purpose of this study was to design and validate a clinical education curriculum model based on social accountability for general medicine students.

A sequential exploratory mixed-method approach was used to conduct this study at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, combining qualitative and quantitative methods. The model was designed using the inductive content analysis method in the qualitative stage and validated through the descriptive-survey method in the quantitative stage. In order to collect data in the qualitative part, the method of studying previous documents, scientific texts and semi-structured interviews with experts and specialists was used, and in the quantitative part, a questionnaire prepared by the researcher was used. The model was developed using the views of 14 professors and 5 general practitioners, selected through purposive and sequential sampling until information saturation was reached.  The model was validated by obtaining opinions from 15 experts using a purposeful and criteria-based method. The content validity ratio (CVR) was estimated using the Lawshe's formula.

In the qualitative phase, this study identified the characteristics of an ideal clinical education curriculum for a general medicine course based on a social responsibility approach. The characteristics identified were based on the four elements of Tyler's model. Based on the findings of this part of the research, the extracted codes in 114 subcategories and 13 main categories include goals: knowledge, attitude, and skills; Content: clinical sciences and skills, health sciences, behavioral sciences, social and professional ethics, communication and leadership skills, and content organization; Teaching-learning methods educational strategies, and teaching-learning methods; Assessment methods performance assessment in vivo, performance assessment in vitro, and essay assignments. In the quantitative phase, the designed model's components and elements underwent validation through expert agreement and received approval with a content validity ratio of CVR=0.81.

In the proposed pattern, the clinical competencies required by general practitioners were the main focus of designing, explaining and describing curriculum elements. Also, this model is designed in such a way that it can meet the needs of society and medical students. It is suggested that medical school officials and curriculum planners use the proposed model in designing the curriculum of general medicine courses to enable medical students to respond to the needs of society.