Evaluation of the Task Compliance of Medical Education Development Centers from the Viewpoint of the Managers of the Centers

Background Medical education development (MED) centers are established in order to improve the quality of medical education. It seems that after more than two decades since the establishment, the centers still have difficulties to perform some tasks. Objectives According to the important role of MED centers, the current study aimed at adapting the performances of such centers with their assigned tasks. Methods The current qualitative applied study was conducted in ۲۰۱۳. The statistical population of the study included managers of MED centers in Iran. Data were collected through a questionnaire containing open questions. During a national meeting the questionnaire distributed among ۴۰ managers of MED centers and then analyzed using content analysis. Results More than half of the major functions that the managers stated, were referred to the first, second, and fourth tasks of the centers, and only ۱۸% of the major functions were related to other tasks (۱۱ cases). About ۲۸% of the functions performed in such centers had no direct correlation with any of the ۱۴ tasks. Conclusions Despite the history of MED centers for several decades, they are not justified in respect to their duties. It is recommended that guidelines be developed to address all duties and adequately monitor their implementation.

Keywords:

Medical Education Development Centers , performance , Indicator , Quality , medical education , Iran