Warning to students on electives

14 December 2009

MEDICAL students on electives must not go beyond their abilities, new BMA guidance warns.

Students who carry out clinical work beyond their competence – even if responding to requests – could face fitness-to-practice hearings, the BMA advises. The warning is part of a new guide to help students tackle ethical and clinical challenges they may face when taking part in electives across in the developing world.

Ethics and medical electives in resource-poor countries - a toolkit sets out eight key pieces of advice. They include:

• Staying within medical students’ areas of competence
• Maintaining ethical standards
• Minimising burdens on host countries
• What to do if students have concerns.

BMA international committee deputy chair Abigail Smith said: “An elective can be a valuable part of medical education. However, it is also a time in which students are without the support they usually receive from their medical schools. Some students find themselves in environments where they might be expected or asked to work outside of their competence.”

The guide is a collaboration between the BMA medical ethics and international committees.

Link:
Ethics and medical electives in resource-poor countries - a toolkit