Dr Elinor Gunning, Course Lead for the Year 6 GPSA, Year 2 GP SCA
and Module lead for Year 3 SSC ‘The Science of Yoga and Mindfulness’.
In November 2017 I attended
the Association for the Study of Medical Education (ASME) Mindfulness in
Medical Education Special Interest Group showcase and Inaugural meeting. Based in the Barts pathology lab, surrounded
by medical specimens looking down on us, medical educators from around the
country gathered to discuss how mindfulness is currently being taught in
medical schools. The day was a
fascinating exploration of current practices and research, with presentations
from ophthalmic surgeons, A&E consultants, and GPs who are all trying to
incorporate mindfulness into their own practices and promote it to their
students. I presented our innovative 3rd
year SSC ‘The Science of Yoga and Mindfulness’ to the group, which stimulated
much discussion. As a group we discussed
the ideal way to teach and assess mindfulness in medical education, and as the
special interest group moves forwards we will be collaborating to draw up best
practice guidelines to guide future educators hoping to develop mindfulness
teaching in their own institutions.
Dr Ahmed Al-Mujil is a Family Medicine Doctor from Saudia Arabia on a one year attachment to the Academic Dept of Primary care at Imperial. In this blog he gives us a unique insight into Family Medicine training in Saudia Arabia. The Family Medicine Residency Training Program in Saudi Arabia was established in 1994, at which time the first edition of the curriculum was written. Since then, Family Medicine and medical education have undergone significant changes. The curriculum was revised many times, until recent adoption of the Canadian Medical Education Directive for Specialists- CanMeds competencies framework in which the “competent physician” seamlessly integrates the competencies of all seven CanMEDS Roles. (Medical expert, Collaborator, Communicator , Leader , Health Advocate, Scholar and Professional). The duration of training in Family Medicine is four years starting from the first of October every year. All trainees must go through the rotations in their traini...

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