Printed in Great'Britain Epidemiology for Medical Students: A Course Relevant to Clinical Practice

A new course was designed to make epidemiology clinically relevant to medical undergraduates. The objectives were that students should (1) know the epidemiology of common diseases, (2) understand epidemiological concepts useful in diagnosis and treatment, and (3) be able to critically assess published medical evidence. Results of a written examination showed that objectives 1 and 2 had been 'easily ' achieved by 80 % and 68 % of students respectively. Student opinion of the course, assessed by an anonymous questionnaire, showed that the majority of students considered the course to be an important part of medical education. Before the course 19 % felt 'reasonably able ' or 'very able ' to achieve nine specific objectives related to epidemiological concepts in diagnosis and treatment. By the end of the course this had risen to 78%. Undergraduate teaching in epidemiology traditionally focuses on methods of research and on the study of disease aetiology. Because the relevance of epi-demiology to clinical practice is not made explicit, students may find the subject uninteresting and perceive it as inconsequential to their needs as future medical practitioners