Where is the philosophy in the continuing education of health professions literature?

摘要

I want to answer the question posed in the title of this editorial with a seeming paradox: philosophy in the continuing education in the health professions (CEHP) literature is everywhere and nowhere simultaneously. How can this be so? "Philosophy" in this context can be interpreted in two ways. The first is as a philosophy of education, a more or less explicit and coherent set of beliefs about matters such as the aims and purposes of CEHP and the nature of adult learners. The second is philosophy as a systematic approach to inquiry. Thus, to say that philosophy is everywhere in CEHP is to say that every educational program, teaching method, accreditation policy, and research project is built on assumptions about what should be the aims of CEHP, the role of educators, the sources of relevant knowledge, and so on, for these are major elements of a philosophy of education. To say that it is nowhere is, of course, an exaggeration; it would be more accurate to say that evidence of philosophical inquiry is seldom found in the literature.