ObjectivesTo evaluate the feasibility of providing regular, live, text-based teaching to medical students and junior doctors in Somaliland using a dedicated case-based medical education website ().DesignReview of MedicineAfrica database for details of teaching sessions held in Somaliland from December 2008-October 2010 and evaluation of user experiences through focus groups.SettingKing's College Hospital, London, UK and Ahmoud University, Borama, Somaliland.ParticipantsFinal year medical students, newly graduated interns and second year interns at Ahmoud University, Borama, Somaliland.Main outcome measuresQualitative and quantitative user rating of online case-based tutorials in the context of pre-existing educational opportunities available to them.ResultsRegular online teaching sessions are received enthusiastically by students and junior doctors and are reported to improve their clinical practice.ConclusionsDespite technological limitations in Somaliland, a live text-based teaching service can be delivered effectively and streamlined with local curricula. This represents an alternative to traditional static teaching methodologies currently used in international medical education.
As more mission groups become involved with health care education, by starting medical and nursing schools, postgraduate training programs and paramedical professional training, there is a need to recruit expatriate faculty from high income countries to help start programs as there are few national health care education professionals available in the mission setting in most low- and middle-income countries. This paper outlines the current status and needs for academic faculty in health care education mission settings. A working group of medical educators met in conjunction with the Global Missions Health Conference in November 2015 and discussed the motivational factors which lead Christian academics to volunteer, both short- and long-term in mission settings. The group then looked at barriers to volunteering and made suggestions for future directions and best practices when mobilizing academics from high income countries.
Critical thinking, an essential skill for the transformation of medical knowledge into practice, should be a key component of medical education, even in cross-cultural training situations. Critical thinking is the use of purposeful, self-regulatory judgment which results in interpretation, analysis, evaluation, and inference as well as the explanation of the evidential, conceptual, methodological, criteriological, or contextual considerations upon which that judgment was based. Critical thinking is important because the healthcare workplace and the science on which healthcare is based continue to advance and evolve. Those who teach healthcare cross-culturally may experience challenges in teaching critical thinking to cross-cultural learners, challenges in the areas of language/communication, cultural differences, customary education approach, and educator factors. The challenges may be identified, addressed, and overcome. Tangible means of implementing training in critical thinking include the use of questions and discussions during educational sessions as well as structured systems for reflecting on causes and treatment of medical conditions.
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