A Course in Psychology and Sociology for Medical Students

A medical sociology course in a revised curriculum

“…To teach medical sociology by formal lectures alone is generally considered unsatisfactory. Two courses, those in Edinburgh, described by Martin et al (1967), and in Bristol, described by Hooper and Humphrey (1968), have indicated that small group teaching and project work have been enjoyed by students. It is thought that the Dundee course has encouraged students to read, write about, and discuss various aspects of medicine in a more critical way, helping them at the same time to realize the value of peer group teaching, and learning to work together.…”

“…It has generally been considered that the behavioural science course should be placed early in the curriculum, before the student is immersed in his clinical work (Report of the Royal Commission on Medical Education, 1968; Martin, MacPherson, and Mayo, 1967; Jefferys, 1969). The first year of the Dundee curriculum is mainly concerned with physics, chemistry, and biological science, while the second year has a very full timetable of anatomy, physiology, and biochemistry.…”

Towards a human ecology course for first-year medical students

“…It is only recently that subjects like medical sociology have been introduced into the curriculum, and psychology has tended to concentrate on the laboratory behaviour of animals rather than the everyday behaviour of human beings. There is considerable variation in the teaching of behavioural science in medical schools, both as to what is taught as well as when and by whom (Martin, McPherson, and Mayo, 1967; Hooper and Humphrey, 1968; Davis, 1970). In the old Glasgow curriculum there is a psychology course run by the Department of Psychological Medicine in the third year, and a series of lectures on medical sociology which have recently been introduced into the fifth‐year course on ‘The population as a patient’ by the Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine.…”

1. The Teaching of Community Medicine in the Undergraduate Curriculum

“…The Royal Commission (Royal Commission on Medical Education, 1968) recommends extending the preclinical course to three years, to include instruction in statistics, human ecology, and the behavioural sciences, the latter along the lines of a course in existence at Edinburgh (Martin, McPherson, and Mayo, 1967). The rationale behind these proposals is that students should be provided with (1) a numerate training, (2) familiarity with methods of investigation in sociology and psychology, and (3) an understanding of human behaviour and institutions, in particular as they relate to medical practice.…”