Healthcare tutors mull techniques

The benefits that improved teaching can bring to healthcare were discussed at this year’s Educators Across the Health Care Spectrum (EAHCSS) event held at Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q) and Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).The annual three-day event, held last month, featured speeches and various workshops in which educators discussed how teaching methods could be improved.The keynote speech, titled ‘Improving Patient Care Through Improved Teaching’, was delivered by Prof Scott Richardson, an international expert on teaching evidence-based healthcare. He shared his views with healthcare professionals from across Doha at the event, which was hosted by WCMC-Q’s graduate medical education (GME) division in association with HMC and introduced by Dr Amal Khidir, chair of the EAHCSS organising committee. Medical staff and academics at HMC’s Hajar Auditorium also received a live transmission of the keynote address. A series of workshops on a variety of topics were conducted over three days. The topics included teaching evidence-based medicine (EBM) and clinical reasoning in clinical settings; enhancing learners’ clinical-reasoning skills; and incorporating EBM into teaching. Dr Khidir said the interest and energy levels highlighted the determination of the educators to change as well as their interest in incorporating evidence-based teaching. He said: “The discussions and interactions in the workshops emphasised the movement in Qatar towards inter-professional education. I see this activity, and more to come, as an opportunity to continue the collaborative spirit and exchange of expertise across the healthcare spectrum.”WCMC-Q’s manager for GME, Deema al-Sheikhly, said the educational series highlighted the need for continuing education at the highest levels and proved popular with academics and staff. “It is an important cross-disciplinary educational programme that will bring two world-class scholars to WCMC-Q each year to speak on key topics in health education,” she said. “This collaborative effort between WCMC-Q’s GME department provided a great opportunity for networking and building a sustainable local capacity in the field of health education.”