by Dr Christine Douglass
The Global Consensus for Social Accountability of Medical Schools (GCSA) has articulated a requirement for medical schools to “respond to current and future health needs and challenges in society, re-orientate their education, research and service priorities accordingly, strengthen governance and partnerships with other stakeholders, and use evaluation and accreditation to assess their performance and impact”. At a time of undergraduate curriculum review at Imperial, the Department of Undergraduate Primary Care Education and Public Health, is prioritising Social Accountability (SA) in its curriculum development, teaching and research.
In conjunction with The Training for Health Equity Network (THEnet) the Department held a Think Tank to explore the relevance of social accountability (SA) for medical education in the UK. Executive director and co-founder of THEnet, Björg Pálsdóttir, and CEO, Professor André-Jacques Neusy provided an international perspective based on their extensive work in this field. Case studies were also presented from the UK, including our ongoing Departmental SA work. Attended by delegates from across the UK, the Think Tank work groups provided an excellent opportunity to actively debate the challenges of healthcare and medical education in the UK in the 21stcentury with a focus reducing health inequity across communities. Discussions included how to build equitable partnerships & meaningful collaborations across multiple stakeholders that simultaneously meet community priorities and professional standards.
The Department is continuing active collaboration with THEnet Schools and planning an international conference on Social Accountability. Dr Christine Douglass has recently been appointed as Senior Social Accountability Teaching Fellow.