Launch of Bristol Medical School marks new era for medical education

The University of Bristol launched the Bristol Medical School
on Tuesday 1 August. This marks a new era for medical research and
education in the West of England. Comprising around 1,330 students and 900
staff, the Bristol Medical School will provide a home for researchers, teachers
and students, who through research and teaching will improve the health of
individuals and populations locally, nationally and internationally.

The launch of the Bristol Medical School coincides with the
introduction of a new medical undergraduate curriculum – MB21 – which will
equip Bristol medical graduates with the skills and qualities needed by doctors
in the rapidly changing world of 21st century healthcare. Currently, over 1,000
medical students receive their education and training across the five years of
the programme, spending time both at the University but also in clinical
academies within NHS Trusts across the South West.

Professor Sarah Purdy, Head of the Bristol Medical School at the
University of Bristol, said:

“Bristol Medical School marks a new era in health
research and education at the University. This will be an exciting environment
in which to work and study. Colleagues delivering cutting-edge research in
areas including population health sciences, cardiovascular sciences, and
neurosciences, will work with clinicians in the School and the NHS to provide a
wide range of educational opportunities for students in the undergraduate
medical programme, as well as those in postgraduate taught and research programmes.”

The MB21 medical undergraduate programme will welcome its first
students this September. The new curriculum approaches the teaching of medicine
in a way that will educate clinician scientists who excel in patient-centred
care across community and hospital-based specialties. Students will be taught
to approach the diagnosis and treatment of ill-health in the context of the
whole person, focusing on the wider social and wellbeing issues that may have
contributed to the symptoms presented.

Professor Purdy added:

“We are incredibly proud of our medical
graduates who consistently rank amongst the best in the country in postgraduate
specialty exams. In collaboration with students, patients, and colleagues in
the NHS, we have built on the excellent medical undergraduate training that we
currently deliver to develop a new programme that will produce doctors who
excel in the clinical, communication and leadership skills that are a
pre-requisite for the practise of medicine in the 21st century.”

Lina Alim, President of the University of Bristol’s Medical
Student Society,
Galenicals,
said:

“The MB21 curriculum will shape tomorrow’s doctors, allowing students
early clinical exposure to consolidate their role as part of the
multidisciplinary team. It will develop medical students into confident doctors
who adopt a holistic approach to patient care.

“Students were involved throughout the development of the MB21
curriculum, and their ideas, concerns and expectations were central to the
process. Being part of the team and feeling both heard and acknowledged has
made us proud to be students at the University of Bristol.”

Professor Purdy added:

“The Medical School is the largest and one
of the most diverse Schools in the University. Many members of staff in the
University and the NHS, students and the public have been involved with
developments in the medical programme and the formation of the Bristol Medical
School. As with any organisation, it is the people who are most important in
creating a successful and supportive working environment. I am very grateful to
all those who have worked so hard on these exciting projects and I very much
look forward to working together in the future.”

Find out more about studying medicine at Bristol by visiting the medicine undergraduate programme.