"We have an opportunity here"

Discussion of a three-point plan to deal with a looming accreditation issue at Dalhousie Medical School ended in a round of applause at a surprisingly upbeat Faculty of Medicine town hall meeting, Wednesday, in Halifax.

The subject of the meeting was a notice of intent received by the school from its American-based accrediting body, the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME). It calls for the school’s accreditation to be renewed on a 24-month probationary basis. The finding has no force or effect at this stage, pending the outcome of an appeal, which the school is launching. In the meantime the medical school’s undergraduate medical education program remains fully accredited.

"Dalhousie’s 2009 graduating class led the country in obtaining their first choice of residency placements in the national competition, organized by the Canadian Resident Matching Service. Our Dalhousie medical graduates also consistently score in the top quartile of Canadian medical students in national licensure exams." - Dr. Tom Marrie

The school’s incoming Dean Tom Marrie M.D. challenged faculty, residents, staff and students to use this setback as an opportunity to put the school at the forefront of medical education in Canada. “I think we have an opportunity here to do something extraordinarily new and innovative.”

Many of those in attendance were energized by the idea and follow-up emails have started to pour into the Dean’s Office from individuals throughout the Faculty offering their expertise and help to implement the plan. Most of the attendees were in Halifax, but a number joined the meeting by video-conference from various sites in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

The aggressive three-point strategy calls for the school to appeal the LCME finding, continue its efforts—ongoing at the time of the accreditation review—to make needed improvements, and launch a major curriculum renewal.

Dr. Marrie says he envisions a renewal “that will exceed current LCME standards and put Dalhousie on the leading edge of undergraduate medical education in Canada.” 

He pointed out the LCME, even while raising concerns about our undergraduate program, acknowledges the excellent outcomes of Dalhousie’s medical graduates. “This is the critical test of any medical education program, and we continue to pass it with flying colours each year. That’s why I’m so confident we will be able to deal in relatively short order with the issues raised by the LCME.”

“Dalhousie’s 2009 graduating class,” he noted, “led the country in obtaining their first choice of residency placements in the national competition, organized by the Canadian Resident Matching Service. Our Dalhousie medical graduates also consistently score in the top quartile of Canadian medical students in national licensure exams.”

Should Dalhousie’s appeal fail, and the initial finding of the LCME stand, the medical school will have 24 months to fix the issues cited by the LCME. During that period the school would remain accredited. “The situation would not compromise our students’ ability to qualify as doctors or their acceptance into postgraduate programs of their choice,” said Dr. Marrie. Further, he said, “it will not affect our MD program in New Brunswick, which is on track to open as an accredited program in September 2010.”