Knowledge, Attitude and Performance of Clinical Faculty Members on Community Oriented Medical Education: A Survey in Mashhad School of Medicine

Introduction: Community-Oriented Medical Education (COME) emphasizes on medical education based on community health needs. Medical teachers need to possess good knowledge of COME and also should have a positive attitude toward it and be able to successfully perform it. The aim of this study is investigating knowledge, attitude and performance of professors regarding COME. Methods: It is a cross-sectional study with non-random sampling conducted with a questionnaire after a pilot study in the educational year 2009-2010. We sent the questionnaires to educational hospitals for professors of medical school in Mashhad University of Medical Sciences. After collecting the questionnaires, data were analyzed using Student T and Pearson Correlation tests by SPSS 11.5(p<0.05). Results: Out of 100 academic members, 37 (37%) were highly knowledgeable, 60 (60%) had an absolutely positive attitude and 53 (53%) had very good or good performances in community- oriented medical education. There also was a statistically significant correlation between knowledge, performance, and the academic rank. Conclusion: The attitude, knowledge, and performance of medical faculty members in Mashhad Medical Schools were satisfactory regarding community-oriented medical education. It may be suggested to run educational courses and plan managerial measures to raise knowledge, cultivate a more positive attitude, and improve performance of the academic members.