RE: How do medical students in their clinical years perceive basic sciences courses at King Saud University?

摘要

The current attitudesof Saudi medical studentstowards the basic science coursesacross the clinical study years asaddressed in the Alam’s study1are alarming and disappointing.Mastering the basic sciences for theundergraduate medical students isnot only fundamental to sufficientlyprepare for clinical practice in theclerkships, but it is also critical topursuing their future careers in thebasic sciences. This is obvious onnoticing that Saudi medical studentshad scarcely pursued careerchoices in the basic sciences.2 Itis essential to make the necessarychanges in the medical curriculumto render basic sciences more relevantto clinical medicine. Recently,many medical school curricula havebeen revised so that they adopt thevertically integrated (VI) curricula.Important changes that need tobe considered include: the provisionof earlier clinical experience;longer clerkships, and the fosteringof increasing levels of responsibility.Moreover; in comparison withthose who have followed non-VIcurricula, graduates of VI curriculaappear to make definitive careerchoices earlier, need less timeand fewer applications to obtainresidency positions, and feel moreprepared for work and postgraduatetraining.