Consumer Research

At about the beginning of June, one in three of all Edinburgh medical students will receive a questionnaire from the Professor of Public Health and Social Medicine. The questions to be asked cover such topics as: factors which influenced the student's decision to enter medicine: his reactions to the medical school; his views on different phases of the medical curriculum and on medical education generally; his views on different branches of medical practice, and his own career plans.This questionnaire represents the first stage of a national enquiry launched by the Association for the study of Medical Education. All medical schools are now engaged on a re-appraisal of their curricula and their teaching methods, and the Association for the Study of Medical Education (or ASME, as it is generally known) recognises that the value of these discussions is likely to be very greatly increased if they take full account of the medical student-his background, his interests and his reactions. Accordingly, all medical schools in Britain will be invited to participate in this enquiry, and the Edinburgh University Department of Public Health and Social Medicine is to carry it out on behalf of ASME