Instruction in quality improvement and patient safety must be a priority in medical students' education.

摘要

We urge medical educators to make instruction on patient safety and quality improvement (Ql) a priority in medical school curricula. The teaching of these topics to medical students has become critically important, in part because of the ongoing debate on the cost of health care centering on physician practices. Studies of Ql curricula for physicians have shown improvements in the physicians' confidence to undertake Ql initiatives.1 However, teaching Ql and patient safety to medical students rather than physicians is complicated by at least two factors. Preclinical students often lack the clinical experience necessary to apply improvement solutions to the complex health care environment. And because of competing demands placed on medical curricula, Ql and patient safety remain recognized but secondary educational objectives at most medical schools.