Letter to the Editor
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Nov 26, 2024; 12(33): 6650-6654
Published online Nov 26, 2024. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v12.i33.6650
Flexner's legacy and the future of medical education: Embracing challenge and opportunity
Quzhen Zeren, Yan Zeng, Jun-Wen Zhang, Jian Yang
Quzhen Zeren, Department of Gastroenterology, Changdu People's Hospital of Xizang, Changdu 854000, Tibet Autonomous Region, China
Yan Zeng, Department of Psychology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400010, China
Jun-Wen Zhang, Jian Yang, Department of Gastroenterology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China
Author contributions: Zeng Y, Yang J, and Zhang JW conceptualized and designed the research; Zeren Q and Yang J performed the literature search, analyzed the data, and wrote the original manuscript; Zeng Y and Zhang JW edited the final manuscript; All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by Education and Teaching Reform Project of the First Clinical College of Chongqing Medical University, No. CMER202305; Program for Youth Innovation in Future Medicine, Chongqing Medical University, No. W0138; and Natural Science Foundation of Tibet Autonomous Region, No. XZ2024ZR-ZY100(Z).
Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors have declared that they have no conflict-of-interest to disclose.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jian Yang, MD, PhD, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Gastroenterology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, No. 1 Youyi Road, Yuzhong District, Chongqing 400016, China. yangjian@hospital.cqmu.edu.cn
Received: April 29, 2024
Revised: September 16, 2024
Accepted: September 23, 2024
Published online: November 26, 2024
Processing time: 150 Days and 14.7 Hours
Abstract

This editorial comments on the article by Alzerwi. We focus on the development course, present challenges, and future perspectives of medical education. Modern medical education is gradually undergoing significant and profound changes worldwide. The emergence of new ideas, methodologies, and techniques has created opportunities for medical education developments and brought new concerns and challenges, ultimately promoting virtuous progress in medical education reform. The sustainable development of medical education needs joint efforts and support from governments, medical colleges, hospitals, researchers, administrators, and educators.

Keywords: Medical education; Medical education reform; Abraham Flexner's report; Educational administration; Challenge and opportunity

Core Tip: Medical education is never invariable, but it keeps pace with the times and is constantly influenced by multiple factors. Reviewing the past and analyzing the present of modern education and medical practice will help move forward better and faster in the new era. The emergence of new ideas, methodologies, and technologies has created opportunities for the development of medical education and also brought new concerns and challenges worthy of contemplation and continuous exploration by every researcher, administrator, and educator concerned about the reform and development of medical education.