A Study of Core Humanistic Competency for Developing Humanism Education for Medical Students

• Published in: Journal of Korean medical science Vol. 31; no. 6; pp. 829 - 835
• Main Authors: Jung, Hee-Yeon, Kim, Jae-Won, Lee, Seunghee, Yoo, Seong Ho, Jeon, Ju-Hong, Kim, Tae-Woo, Park, Joong Shin, Jeong, Seung-Yong, Oh, Seo Jin, Kim, Eun Jung, Shin, Min-Sup
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences 01.06.2016; 대한의학회
• Subjects: Adult; Curriculum; Female; Health Personnel - psychology; Humanism; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Original; Parents - psychology; Students, Medical - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Young Adult; 의학일반; Medical Students; Medical Education; Humanism
• ISSN: 1011-8934; 1598-6357
• DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2016.31.6.829

The authors conducted a survey on essential humanistic competency that medical students should have, and on teaching methods that will effectively develop such attributes. The participants consisted of 154 medical school professors, 589 medical students at Seoul National University College of Medicine, 228 parents, and 161 medical school and university hospital staff. They answered nine questions that the authors created. According to the results, all groups chose "morality and a sense of ethics," a "sense of accountability," "communication skills," and "empathic ability" were selected as essential qualities. According to the evaluation on the extent to which students possess each quality, participants believed students had a high "sense of accountability" and "morality," whereas they thought students had low "empathic ability," "communicate," or "collaborate with others". In terms of effective teaching methods, all sub-groups preferred extracurricular activities including small group activities, debates, and volunteer services. With regard to the speculated effect of humanism education and the awareness of the need for colleges to offer it, all sub-groups had a positive response. However the professors and students expressed a relatively passive stance on introducing humanism education as a credited course. Most participants responded that they preferred a grading method based on their rate of participation, not a relative evaluation. In order to reap more comprehensive and lasting effects of humanism education courses in medical school, it is necessary to conduct faculty training, and continuously strive to develop new teaching methods.