MEDICAL EDUCATION

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22320, 18 January 1936, Page 12

MEDICAL EDUCATION

A timely and very valuable report 011 medical education in New Zealand was presented to the University Senate yesterday. It is xnade quite clear that, while exacting standards are required of future doctors at the Dunedin school, involving a sixyear course, there is not sufficient clinical material offering in the Southern centre to afford all students offering the necessary opportunities for observation and experience. Consequently, it appears from the report, there has been a tendency to give more attention than need be to what might be called text-book work and lectures, and less than is desirable to clinical or hospital work. Sixth-year students have to go for most of their study material to other hospital centres and the report suggests that it might be an advantage if fifth-year students were similarly diverted. The Ofcago Medical Faculty is to report on this latter point. If it should prove desirable to centre these studies elsewhere, it would also seem necessary that there should be proper organisation and direction of these highly important final years, when students are seeking to apply their knowledge to actual cases. The alternative seems to be to apply an annual quota to admissions to the medical school. That restrictive device on an essential service should never again be used, in order to conceal local deficiencies that can be supplied elsewhere. The Senate must face the question fairly and squarely. It has a public and indeed a national duty to discharge and cannot afford to take small or short views on such an issue.