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Student soapbox: dermatology is important

BMJ 2001; 322 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/sbmj.0106208 (Published 01 June 2001) Cite this as: BMJ 2001;322:0106208
  1. Samena Chaudhry, fourth year medical student1
  1. 1University of Birmingham

Samena Chaudhry urges greater attention to training in skin diseases

The inadequacy of undergraduate training in dermatology is well documented. The reports of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Skin (March 1997 and July 1998) highlighted the urgent need to improve the training at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.1 A survey of the undergraduate curriculums at 28 medical schools found that teaching in dermatology was generally unsatisfactory because of “variable objectives,” “too little time,” and “student groups too large with not enough teachers.”2

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The graduate who has sufficient knowledge to assume the responsibilities of a preregistration house officer has been described as a “sad interpretation of medical education,” merely shifting the problems to postgraduate level. 3

Some people might argue that doctors who need to know about dermatology should gain experience during their postgraduate training as the skill only comes with years of experience. Should it not be possible for us to be taught equally in all specialties? But if the goal is to attract more students to the specialty then most dermatologists would disagree because compared with the whole body of consultants the number of posts …

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