A survey of the quality and quantity of clinical education from the viewpoint of medical students

Introduction: Clinical education is a process during which students gradually acquire skills for clinical management of patients by visiting patients. The aim of this study was to determine the quality and quantity of clinical education from the view point of junior and senior doctors. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive, analytical study. All clinical students of the faculty of medicine in YUMS in the year 1385-1386 were surveyed after they gave their informed written consent. Data were collected by a researcher made questionnaire with approved validity and reliability. 54 students totally consisted of personal identification, the quality and quantity of attending, clinical education, and educational contexts were assessed. Each question had four choice options and the cut-off point was considered 60 out of 100. After the primary data analysis, the students were asked to take part in a Focus Group Discussion to have a conclusion of their ultimate opinions. The data were analyzed using SPSS software. Results: 68% of the students evaluated the quality of clinical education unsatisfactory and 48% of them assessed the instructors as unsatisfactory. The interns were significantly assessed as unsatisfactory in OBS-GYN, surgery and internal wards more than stagers. Conclusion: Quality and quantity of clinical education of the faculty of medicine was evaluated as undesirable from view point of students. Totally, clinical education requires further attention from the different perspectives.