The medical faculty of the Johannes Kepler University (JKU) introduces its students to general medicine in the first week of their studies. As an introduction, the first-year students visit a family doctor’s practice to get to know the work.
It is one of numerous general medical fixed points in the curriculum. “We are aware that we also have a social responsibility. Care provided by qualified general practitioners is the foundation of our healthcare system,” says Elgin Drda, Vice Rector for Medicine at the JKU.
In order to create an additional incentive, the JKU is now awarding a grant of 400 euros to trainees who complete a four-week internship in general medicine. “We want to get students interested in general medicine at an early age,” said Drda yesterday at a press conference on the occasion of World Day for General Medicine. The JKU also focuses on general medicine in research, says Rector Meinhard Lukas: “A sound education is essential.”
The aim of the research is to support general practitioners with current challenges, says Erika Zelko, who holds the chair for general medicine. “This ranges from care in rural areas to patients who are ill several times to digitization,” says the doctor.
Another important mainstay are the 75 teaching surgeries in which students experience the work of family doctors in everyday practice. 150 general practitioners teach in various partnerships at the JKU.
Source: Nachrichten
