FUNCTIONS OF MEDICAL EDUCATION UNIT

The functions of MEUs vary from institution to institution; their scope of activities can include undergraduate and postgraduate education and continuing professional education. These activities could extend not only to medical professionals but also to other health-care professions such as dentistry, pharmacy, medical technology and nursing. In general, the functions of MEUs span the areas of research, teaching, service, workshops, evaluation, consultancies, and the career development of staff.

Objectives:

Faculty members should avail of modern educational technology while teaching the students and to attain  objective for faculty development and provide learning resource material for teachers. With this directive from MCI, Medical Education Units (MEU) have been created in  Government Medical College, Bettiah.

1.       An essential objective of MEUs across institutions is to conduct research and provide scientifically sound information that advances and promotes medical education.

2.      The extent and priority of research in different MEUs depends on many identified factors such as access to research expertise, the medical education innovation, the quality of   faculty and the complementary areas of expertise they possess, critical mass of educational scholars, status of the medical education unit, mentorship, faculty development for   advanced training in educational sfield.

3.      MEUs play an important part in creating a culture of research by innovating, developing new approaches to medical education and publishing their findings.

4.      Communication concerning research such as running journal clubs, circulating medical education newsletters, and conducting medical education rounds  are also ways used by the   units for promoting this culture.

5.      An important role of MEUs is to provide an academic home for and nurture the careers of faculty members wanting to focus on educational scholarship and develop as future   medical educationists. By ensuring that these faculty members are given the necessary exposure to the field, and are allowed to develop their studies and publish research in   medical education, MEUs help them to gain academic rewards and recognition for their expertise.

6.      MEUs play important role in several contemporary needs. By providing specialised resources for teaching, service and a focus on educational research, they are essential to the   continued development of medical education as a discipline.