CUBA - SA Cooperation On Medical Education
Abstract
The Department of International Development, UK have funded a Policy & Practice grant (???Learning from the Cuban Experience in Medical Education: a collaborative Cuba/UK proposal for using evidence of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the Cuban model to drive policy change for Universal Health Coverage???) to enable policy relevant information to be assembled to answer questions about the relevance of the Cuban approach to medical education in Sub Saharan Africa:
??? Is there a model or several models?
??? What is the underlying philosophy and pedagogic appaoch?
??? Does the Cuban system of medical education impact positively on the delivery of care and the wider health, educational and research systems in Sub Saharan Africa? And if so, how do specific impacts occur?
??? Does the Cuban training provide an appropriate set of skills and competencies for the intended role of the trainees (i.e. is the training fit for purpose?).
??? How do the quality of teaching, competencies of graduates in their role as primary care practitioners, and the cost of training at Cuban Medical Universities overseas, compare with Universities following the Western training model in Sub Saharan Africa?
??? How does medical training relate to the training of the other members of the health team?
??? How is care provided by faculty staff perceived by community members?
??? Is the approach sustainable?
??? In addressing the research questions, we will aim to draw generic lessons for the training of health care professionals for deployment in low income countries in sub Saharan Africa.
