The Social Mission of Medical Education
Authors: Martin Donohoe
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2010)

Letters5 October 2010The Social Mission of Medical EducationMartin Donohoe, MDMartin Donohoe, MDFrom Portland State University, Oregon Chapter of the Physicians for Social Responsibility, and Kaiser Sunnyside Medical Center, Portland, OR 97207.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-153-7-201010050-00021 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:I read the article by Mullan and colleagues (1) with great interest. Motivating medical students to enter primary care and work in health professional shortage areas requires healing the historical schism between schools of medicine and those of public health and focusing medical education more on the socioeconomic, cultural, psychological, occupational, and environmental contributors to illness. Health policy, social justice, human rights, environmental health, and reproductive rights are given short shrift (2, 3). Despite calls for increased emphasis on global bioethics (4), aside from informed consent and end-of-life care, contemporary ethics discourse and training overemphasize fascinating dilemmas ...References1. Mullan F, Chen C, Petterson S, Kolsky G, Spagnola M. The social mission of medical education: ranking the schools. Ann Intern Med. 2010;152:804-11. [PMID: 20547907] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Donohoe M. Roles and responsibilities of health care professionals in combating environmental degradation and social injustice: education and activism. Monash Bioeth Rev. 2008;27:65-82. [PMID: 19205317] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Donohoe MT. Stories and society: using literature to teach medical students about public health and social justice. International Journal of the Creative Arts in Interdisciplinary Practice. 2009; Issue 8. Accessed at ijcaip.com/archives/IJCAIP-8-Donohoe.html on 29 June 2010. Google Scholar4. Dwyer J. Teaching global bioethics. Bioethics. 2003;17:432-46. [PMID: 14959707] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Donohoe MT. Family medicine should encourage the development of luxury practices: negative position. In: Buetow S, Kenealy T, eds. Ideological Debates in Family Medicine. New York: Nova Science Publishers; 2007:187-201. Accessed at phsj.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/luxury-medical-care-ideological-debates-in-family-medicine.pdf on 29 June 2010. Google Scholar6. Magnus SA, Mick SS. Medical schools, affirmative action, and the neglected role of social class. Am J Public Health. 2000;90:1197-201. [PMID: 10936995] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Martin Donohoe, MDAffiliations: From Portland State University, Oregon Chapter of the Physicians for Social Responsibility, and Kaiser Sunnyside Medical Center, Portland, OR 97207.Note: Dr. Donohoe's academic work can be found at www.publichealthandsocialjustice.org.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoThe Social Mission of Medical Education: Ranking the Schools Fitzhugh Mullan , Candice Chen , Stephen Petterson , Gretchen Kolsky , and Michael Spagnola The Social Mission of Medical Education John A. Brockman , Matthew J. Stull , and Elizabeth Wiley The Social Mission of Medical Education Gregg S. Meyer The Social Mission of Medical Education Norman H. Edelman The Social Mission of Medical Education Pojen Deng The Social Mission of Medical Education Fitzhugh Mullan and Candice Chen The Social Mission of Medical Education Eric A. Mellon The Social Mission of Medical Education Scott Barnhart and James LoGerfo Metrics Cited byWhat makes a medical school socially accountable in Latin America? A report from a Latin American panel based on a qualitative approach 5 October 2010Volume 153, Issue 7Page: 484-485KeywordsEnvironmental healthHealth promotionMedical educationPrevention, policy, and public healthPublic policyRacial and ethnic issuesResearch fundingScientistsSocial welfareTobacco control ePublished: 5 October 2010 Issue Published: 5 October 2010 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2010 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...