Competency Based Medical Education is making big strides ahead, gaining swift momentum in India and the world over. And this can be attributed to the fact that there is a growing demand and urgent need to create proficient medical professionals. Ones that are able to treat the patient as much as the illness.
But what is Competency Based Medical Education, you might ask?
Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) is a learner-centric, skill-driven, practical academic module that focuses on imbibing the right set of competencies in medical graduates.
Rather than focusing on knowledge and knowledge alone, the curriculum smartly shifts emphasis on the attributes and skills required for the efficient treatment, care, and management of society’s diverse health needs.
A Glimpse into India’s MedEd Industry
While India is home to the largest number of medical colleges and is also a thriving market for medical tourism, the majority of its citizens do not have access to basic medical infrastructure and healthcare facilities. The doctor-population ratio is significantly lower than what is mandated by the World Health Organisation.
Furthermore, the country’s medical education system is driven by a curriculum that is largely theory-oriented and time-intensive, with the majority of the evaluation techniques being summative and providing little or no opportunity for constructive feedback. This is coupled with teaching-learning activities and assessment modules that hinge more on knowledge rather than attitudes and skills, widening the already vast gap between theory and application.
A graduate may have depth and breadth of knowledge, but that does not mean he/she possesses the clinical skills required to practice medicine. Similarly, he/she may lack the interpersonal skills or Emotional Quotient (EQ) needed to develop effective two-way communication channels.
Given this scenario and context, Competency-Based Medical Education works towards ensuring those graduates develop the requisite knowledge, skills, and attributes to fulfill patients’ needs.
Multiple criteria must be met for a student to be ready/deemed fit for practice. CBME provides this holistic grounding.
Components of Competency Based Medical Education
According to the research paper titled “Competency-based medical education: An overview and application in pharmacology” by the Indian Journal of Pharmacology, there are three distinct components to this curriculum:
Competency/ Core competencies – A competency is nothing but a capability observed by a student/aspiring healthcare professional. It comprises aspects such as knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, and personality traits. The Medical Council of India (MCI) has listed five competencies including Clinician, Leader, and Member of The Healthcare Team, System Communicator, Life-long Learner, and Professional.
Entrustable Professional Activity – Entrustable Professional Activity (EPA) is the meeting point between theory and practice, which bridges the gap between these two key aspects. So, while competencies describe the abilities of the healthcare professional, EPAs describe the specificity of the work, for e.g., clinical research, treatment protocol, interpretation of reports, interviewing, etc. The culmination of both helps students develop into capable physicians.
Milestone – A competency is not realized overnight. It’s a gradual process that entails students passing through a number of different steps. These steps are designated as milestones. According to the Dreyfus Model, there are five steps including Novice, Advanced Beginner, Competent, Proficient, and finally, Expert.
Camu empowers medical universities with a fully compatible CBME model which comprises smart, intuitive features such as:
Examination – With prerequisites set in place and examination roles determined, Camu CoE offers an efficient assessment solution to all medical institutes.
Live Streaming of Medical Labs – You can now live stream the practical classes for physiology, microbiology, and histopathology with a high-resolution Camera. Camu facilitates the same
Attendance – Camu’s QR Code model allows students to mark their own attendance by scanning the QR code from their mobile apps, saving considerable time and energy.
Accreditation – Camu helps institutes earn the accreditation as mandated by the Medical Council of India. Camu is fully compliant with medical CBME
Clinical Rotation Plan – Camu understands the need for medical students to be on clinical rotation and inherently it takes care of the same, a hassle-free clinical rotation and activity-based clinical posting scheduling are highly smooth in Camu. By giving institutions the platform and opportunity to implement a practical, skills-driven curriculum, we pave the way for more experienced, knowledgeable, ethical, and thoughtful health care professionals.
