"Change agents" from school to health systems: assessing post-medical school graduates via alumni visiting program
Creators: name: Pharanyoo Osotthanakorn
name: Sirichai Hongsanguansri
Publisher: name: F1000 Research Limited
Year: 2023

description: The Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital has set a moonshot goal of being an "Incubator of Change Agents". The Alumni Visiting Program provides an opportunity to be a tool for "Change Agent" evaluation. The data highlighted the need for health system science knowledge and skills, including health system management and leadership.<br> <br> <b>Background</b><br> The Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University has set a moonshot goal of being an "Incubator of Change Agents" and has implemented seven program learning outcomes, including traditional medical school outcomes and two additional outcomes related to teamwork and leadership and research competencies.<br> According to Frenk and Chen (2010), education and health systems have complex interactions, and competency evaluation is crucial for medical graduates to be effective healthcare professionals. The traditional post-medical school evaluation in Thailand includes a one-year internship program provided by the Medical Council of Thailand. However, gaps still exist in individualising the post- medical school evaluation program based on the university's identity and in evaluating graduates as "Change Agents."<br> The Alumni Visiting Program, since 1972, provides an opportunity to gather feedback from graduates about their competencies and problems in the healthcare system. This program could help fill the gaps in post-medical school leadership and "Change Agent" evaluation.<br> <br> <b>Summary Of Work</b><br> A review of secondary data was performed. The reports of the Alumni Visiting Programme from 2007–2022 were thematically analysed to find the core theme of the program and the result of the evaluation.<br> <br> <b>Summary Of Results</b><br> Analysis of 12 annual reports from 85 hospitals in 47 Thai provinces, with some years of missing data due to COVID-19 and file damage, showed that Ramathibodi graduates have strong knowledge and are willing to speak up, leading to workplace changes. However, they lack hand-skills, self- management, interprofessional collaboration, and context-based clinical work. Community hospitals recommended that medical students should be equipped with health system management knowledge and skills, including leading the Hospital Accreditation (HA) process.<br> <br> <b>Discussion And Conclusion</b><br> The health system provided feedback on a leadership framework and considered graduates as potential "Change Agents". Alumni highlighted the need for health system science knowledge and skills, including health system management. However, a more strategic and quantitative approach is required for proper post-medical school evaluation.<br> <br> <b>Take Home Messages</b><br> Not only “Incubating Change Agent” in health systems is a challenging goal, but also it’s measurement. As once said “we cannot improve what we cannot measure,” a comprehensive, community-based measurement process must be developed and implemented in the complex adaptive system of health systems and health education.