Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Why medical education needs to evolve away from memorization

Josh Herigon, MPH
Education
April 1, 2011
Share
Tweet
Share

Skeptical Scalpel writing at KevinMD.com in a post giving some advice to second year medical students nails the problem with medical education on the head:

Rather than forcing [medical students] to memorize information, we should be teaching you how analyze and synthesize it as it relates to your patient.

Our increasingly sophisticated and robust understanding of the pathophysiology of human disease processes coupled with the growth in diagnostic testing power means the ability to integrate disparate information is becoming much more important for patient care than memorization of disease lists.  The increasing pervasiveness of electronic medical records (EMRs) will only further this shift as comprehensive patient information becomes the norm rather than the exception.  Instead of relying on a progress note and one set of recent labs, we will be able to see a patient’s entire medical history with every lab and every imaging study they have ever had.

Probably the biggest threat to efficient patient care today is unreliable or missing information–poor history from the patient and missing or incomplete records from other physicians and past hospitalizations.  In this environment, good history taking and physical exam skills are king.

In the coming years, instead of trying to deal with incomplete information we will be struggling to cope with too much information.  Being able to critically evaluate information and integrate it with the patient’s current condition will become the biggest challenge for physicians.  Yet medical education is stuck in an educational paradigm from nearly 100 years ago.  In this era, where we had few diseases, knew less about them, had fewer tools to diagnose them and a limited set of therapeutic options, memorization of key disease processes and relevant pharmacology was prudent.  Today, where so much information is at our fingertips, being able to find the right information quickly and apply it is much more important.  Each and every time I am in a clinical setting I see a physician access outside information — textbooks, UpToDate, Epocrates, Sanford Antimicrobial Guide, medical journals — but didactic use of these resources is almost never incorporated into medical education.

Memorization of key aspects of physiology, pathology, and anatomy will always be integral to medical education.  However, our system needs to evolve and begin incorporating educational activities emphasizing how to efficiently integrate disparate pieces of information into clinical medicine.  These activities need to focus on finding information, evaluating the quality and importance of such information, and synthesis of this information with the presentation of the patient.  Instead of leaving it up to students to develop their own strategies as they take on their own patients in residency, we should proactively incorporate these skills into formal medical education from the beginning and systematically teach the best methods.

Josh Herigon is a medical student who blogs a Number Needed to Treat.

Submit a guest post and be heard on social media’s leading physician voice.

Prev

Artificial intelligence and capturing quality information into your EHR

April 1, 2011 Kevin 2
…
Next

Thank you! March 2011 was the busiest month ever on KevinMD.com

April 1, 2011 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Medical school

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Artificial intelligence and capturing quality information into your EHR
Next Post >
Thank you! March 2011 was the busiest month ever on KevinMD.com

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Josh Herigon, MPH

  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Did the NEJM publish a bad study about checklists?

    Josh Herigon, MPH
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    The threat of technology to proper patient care

    Josh Herigon, MPH
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    How social media will merge with electronic medical records

    Josh Herigon, MPH

More in Education

  • Why clinical research is a powerful path for unmatched IMGs

    Dr. Khutaija Noor
  • Dear July intern: It’s normal to feel clueless—here’s what matters

    Tomi Mitchell, MD
  • Why medical schools must ditch lectures and embrace active learning

    Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA
  • Why helping people means more than getting an MD

    Vaishali Jha
  • Residency match tips: Building mentorship, research, and community

    Simran Kaur, MD and Eva Shelton, MD
  • How I learned to stop worrying and love AI

    Rajeev Dutta
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why specialist pain clinics and addiction treatment services require strong primary care

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why peer support can save lives in high-pressure medical careers

      Maire Daugharty, MD | Conditions
    • When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

      Ralph Messo, DO | Physician
    • Addressing menstrual health inequities in adolescents

      Callia Georgoulis | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
  • Recent Posts

    • Deep transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How declining MMR vaccination rates put future generations at risk

      Ambika Sharma, Onyi Oligbo, and Katrina Green, MD | Conditions
    • The physician who turned burnout into a mission for change

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician
    • Time theft: the unseen harm of abusive oversight

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • How one unforgettable ER patient taught a nurse about resilience

      Kristen Cline, BSN, RN | Conditions
    • The future of clinical care: AI’s role in easing physician workload

      Michael Wakeman | Tech

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 13 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Why specialist pain clinics and addiction treatment services require strong primary care

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • Harassment and overreach are driving physicians to quit

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician
    • Why peer support can save lives in high-pressure medical careers

      Maire Daugharty, MD | Conditions
    • When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

      Ralph Messo, DO | Physician
    • Addressing menstrual health inequities in adolescents

      Callia Georgoulis | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Who gets to be well in America: Immigrant health is on the line

      Joshua Vasquez, MD | Policy
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
  • Recent Posts

    • Deep transcranial magnetic stimulation for depression [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How declining MMR vaccination rates put future generations at risk

      Ambika Sharma, Onyi Oligbo, and Katrina Green, MD | Conditions
    • The physician who turned burnout into a mission for change

      Jessie Mahoney, MD | Physician
    • Time theft: the unseen harm of abusive oversight

      Kayvan Haddadan, MD | Physician
    • How one unforgettable ER patient taught a nurse about resilience

      Kristen Cline, BSN, RN | Conditions
    • The future of clinical care: AI’s role in easing physician workload

      Michael Wakeman | Tech

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Why medical education needs to evolve away from memorization
13 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...