Developing Educational Competencies Required for the Infectious Diseases Specialty Residency Program in Iran: A Competency-based Curriculum

Background: Curriculum design and development are among the key components of medical education. Today, the dominant approach to curriculum planning is the competency-based approach. However, despite the emphasis posed by the medical education scientific community on this approach, medical education in both undergraduate and graduate levels in Iran continues to be delivered traditionally. As it is highly important for infectious diseases specialists to acquire the necessary competencies for the treatment of patients with infectious diseases, this study aimed to identify and present such competencies through localizing the competencies laid down by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) of the United States. Methods: This study built on ACGME competencies as its point of departure. The Delphi method was used to extract the required items (i.e., competencies) into a questionnaire. When the content and face validity as well as the reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed, copies of the questionnaire were distributed among faculty members, specialists and residents. The items were prioritized according to the scores given by the participants. Results: According to the results of this study, one general rotation and ten specialized rotations were defined for infectious diseases residents. In each rotation, the expected competencies are enlisted. These competencies are categorized differently in competency-based curricula for the infectious diseases specialty residency programs.   Conclusion: According to characteristics of a competency-based curriculum, accountable physicians can be assuredly expected to be trained according to the requirements of the community in case they are trained within such a program.