Revisiting the Flexner Report: Opportunities for Improving Sudan's Healthcare Through Medical Education

Mohammed H. Karrar Alsharif; Abubaker Y. Elamin; Abdulaziz Alarifi; Juman M. Almasaad; Nagi M. Bakhit; Wafaa A. Hassan; Ebtisam Zumrawi; Khalid M Taha

Revisiting the Flexner Report: Opportunities for Improving Sudan's Healthcare Through Medical Education

Mohammed H. Karrar Alsharif, Abubaker Y. Elamin, Abdulaziz Alarifi, Juman M. Almasaad, Nagi M. Bakhit, Wafaa A. Hassan, Ebtisam Zumrawi, Khalid M Taha

Abstract

This article offers an overview of Abraham Flexner and the influential Flexner Report, which had a significant impact on medical education in the United States and Canada. The report, written by Flexner, criticized the prevailing medical education system guided by financial motives and proposed reforms. The article discusses the Flexner Report's historical context, recommended medical education standards, and consequences. It acknowledges the report's positive aspects, such as enhanced educational standards and the emphasis on biomedical sciences and clinical training. However, it also highlights the report's negative features, including biased recommendations to close black medical schools and female-only institutions. Despite these limitations, the report continues to shape contemporary medical education. The article concludes by examining how the positive elements of the Flexner Report can be implemented nationally and internationally to improve the quality and value of medical education, with specific considerations for Sudan.

Keywords

Flexner Report, Medical Education, Educational standards, Impact, Medical schools

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