Teaching and Assessment of Professionalism: A Comparative Study between Two Medical Schools

Background: Medical professionalism, a key element in medical practice, includes values, behaviours and relationships that build up the trust between the public and doctors. As professionalism is not inborn social characteristics, it is vital to be formally taught in the undergraduate curriculum. The study aimed to assess and compare the degree of coverage of professionalism behaviours in Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University (FOM-SCU), Egypt, and Ibn Sina National College for Medical Studies (ISNC), Saudi Arabia. Method: Two-stage survey was used to obtain information about curricular components related to teaching and assessment of professionalism and to review the programs of both schools against the categories of professionalism behaviours. Results: Both schools were found to have curricular components related to teaching and assessment of professionalism. Coverage of professionalism components in FOM-SCU curriculum was 100% of the courses, except for “Honour and Integrity” and “Caring and Compassion”. At ISNC, coverage ranged between (26.4%) to (37.7%), except for “Altruism”. Some teaching and assessment methods of professionalism were common between both schools, while some were specific for each school. The relative amount of professionalism teaching is different in both schools. Conclusion: Both schools recognise the necessity to address professionalism as an essential component of their students’ education. FOM-SCU needs to emphasise on Honour and Integrity and Care and Compassion, while ISNC needs to pay more attention to teaching of most components of professionalism.