Introduction
In recognition of our increasingly globalised world, global health is now a
required component of the medical school curriculum in the UK. We review
the current provision of global health education (GHE) in UK medical schools
to identify gaps in compulsory teaching.
Methods
We conducted a review of the literature to inform a two-part electronic survey
of global health compulsory teaching, optional teaching and pre-elective
training. Surveys were sent to all 33 UK medical schools for completion by the
faculty lead on global health and the nominated final year student
representative.
Results
Surveys were returned by 29 (88%) medical school faculty and 15 (45%)
medical student representatives; 24 (83%) faculty and 10 (67%) students
reported including GHE in the core curriculum, however, there was wide
variation in learning outcomes covered. On average 75% of faculty and 82%
of students reported covering recommended global health themes ‘Global
burden of disease’, ‘Socioeconomic and environmental determinants of
health’, Human rights and ethics’, and ‘Cultural diversity and health’, whilst
only 48% of faculty and 33% of students reported teaching on ‘Health
systems’ and ‘Global health governance’. Almost all institutions offered
optional global health programmes and most offered some form of preelective training, although content and delivery were variable.
Conclusion
Over the last decade, the inclusion of global health in the core curriculum of
UK medical schools has increased dramatically. Yet, despite interest amongst
students, significant gaps are apparent in current GHE. Governing bodies in
medical education should establish a comprehensive national strategy to help
improve access to fundamental GHE for all medical students.