Evaluation of internal medicine residency in Riga, Latvia.docx edited.edited
docx
keyboard_arrow_up
School
University of Nairobi *
*We aren’t endorsed by this school
Course
PHE-20246
Subject
Medicine
Date
Nov 24, 2024
Type
docx
Pages
8
Uploaded by Carl2030
Surname
1
Name
Course
Instructor
Date
Evaluation of Internal Medicine Residency in Riga
Introduction
Riga is the capital city of Latvia, which is situated in Northern Europe. Riga adopted the
internal medicine residency of Europe ten years ago and just like many other states in Europe; it
still faces some challenges especially in relation to the quality of residency in the city (Sacks 23).
The European system was introduced in Latvian because it is effective in terms of quality of
education and effectiveness of the doctors who emerge after graduating. Moreover, it was
introduced because Latvia state was always experiencing shortages of doctors in its hospitals
since not so many visitors came to study the state’s old system. The introduction of the new
system has increased the number of foreign students in the country, which in turn has played a
key function offeeding the hospitals with doctors.
Since the European system was introduced, there has been an upsurge in the quantity of
qualified physicians in the hospitals across the city and the entire country. The expectations of
the patients also increased because the European system is much better in terms of quality of
training and integration of technology (Sacks 29). However, the main problem is that most
students especially international medical students graduate but are only given a certification as
opposed to their degrees because of the language barrier. Latvia's national language is Latvian,
and each graduating doctor must be able to speak it fluently.
Surname
2
Theoretical Framework
Various theoretical frameworks underpin the study. First, the study will examine the
attribution theory, which is a way of evaluating the achievements and disappointments of the
healthcare program in medical schools (Abrams, Patchan, and Boat 29). The medical students in
schools across the city experience
positive and negative upshots in their studies. Some of them
manage to graduate and become doctors in the local hospitals while others receive diplomas only
because of being unable to speak Latvian fluently. The study will depict attribution theory as a
possible health care management theory that is useful for creating a safer environment for
medical students in Riga city as well as how to fight the challenge of the language barrier. It
means that the theory will be used as part of the resolution to the challenges facing the internal
medicine residency program of the city.
The other theoretical framework that will support this study is the evidence-based
management (Webb 48). The theory will be useful in examining the behaviors of the heads of
departments who have been sluggish in accepting and applying the same philosophies to which
they mostly hold health care employees. The evidence-based approach requires interns to make
decisions centered on the evidence available. It means that they should examine their easiness of
grasping Latvian language in order to qualify as doctors and work in the city. The last theoretical
framework is the utilization management, which is widely applied in the health care system
across the globe. This study will demonstrate how utilization management helps the medical
students to manage time in both language learning and medical training (Roberts and Priest 49).
All these theories are significant for this study and will be helpful in resolving the problems
affecting quality of medicine residency in Riga city.
Main Aim and Objectives
Surname
3
This research proposal will seek to evaluate the quality of internal medicine education
offered to the students in medical colleges and universities across Riga city. It will also examine
the theoretical nature of the education in relation to seminars, problem lectures, and patient
discussions among other aspects. The proposal will evaluate both practical training and
independent work (Abrams, Patchan, and Boat 36). The practical training will focus on the study
courses related to hospitals and out-patient institutions as well as laboratories. The independent
work will concentrate on literature research, scientific research and practical work. Lastly, the
research proposal will examine an aspect of the language barrier in the medical education in
terms of the way it affects students.
Conceptual Framework
Riga city was using its internal medicine residency system that was different from the
European system, which applies to most countries in Europe. However, the conventional
residency system that was used in Riga city eleven years ago was not effective in terms of
offering quality education to the students. There was a need for Riga city and the entire Latvian
state to adopt the European Medicine Residency System (Webb 49). The European residency
system has been more effective in Riga than the previous system, but it still faces numerous
challenges.
The main challenge is that foreign students, especially those who have been in the
country for a short time, find it difficult to learn Latvian language. It makes the situation difficult
for them because they cannot graduate as qualified doctors and work in the hospitals across Riga
city. The reason is that they will be unable to communicate to the patients who mostly speak
Latvian hence unable to offer medical solutions to them (Sacks 37). The interns who receive
certification because of the language barrier gets disappointed, and some of them abandon these
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
Surname
4
institutions and go to graduate in other English speaking countries. This has majorly contributed
to the shortage of doctors in the local hospitals which greatly interferes with the quality of
medical services offered to the patients.
Hypotheses to be Tested
I.
The introduction of the European system in Riga city increased the number of the
international students in medical schools across the city.
II.
Language barrier is affecting most medical graduates in Riga, who are forced to attain a
diploma certificate only instead of graduating and joining the medical field.
III.
The number of medical doctors in Riga city is too low in comparison to the patients
observed in healthcare centers across the city (Abrams, Patchan, and Boat 45)
IV.
The patients usually have high expectations because they believe in the new European
Medicine Residency System in comparison to the previous system.
V.
The expectations of the patients in healthcare centers are not fully met by the doctors who
graduate from medical schools across the city (Sacks 31).
VI.
The shortage of doctors in the city cannot be settled by bringing doctors from other
countries in Europe due to the language barrier.
Study Design
Data Collection
The study will use a quantitative method to collect data. The techniques that will be
employed include questionnaires and interviews. The survey will involve interns, doctors, heads
of departments, international experts, and even patients. The survey will be conducted in
different medical institutions and at least one health center in the city with each medical school
or faculty having a maximum of 100 respondents. The total number of questionnaires that will be
Surname
5
submitted in all the hospitals will be 500 (Melnyk and Fineout-Overholt 67). The interview
process will involve 20 interviewees who will come from different medical schools in the city
and other regions of the globe. The interviewees will be majorly heads of departments and
international experts because they are the people who understand all the challenges experienced
in the internal medicine residency in the city and across the globe.
They can offer pertinent
solutions to the problems facing internal medicine residency.
The questions on the questionnaires and even the interview will be centered on the
challenges facing the internal residency system in Riga (Persson, Stirna, and Aggestam 56). The
interns and doctors will give views on what they feel should be done to increase awareness of the
Latvian language to increase the number of doctors in the hospitals across the city. Patients will
give their views on what they feel is the key problem of the medicine residency system and the
perceived solution to the problem (Sacks 77).
Data Analysis
The analysis of data will be centered on the number of principal investigators (PI) used,
the timeframe to be taken for completion of the study, the nature of the study – in terms of
limitations, challenges, strengths, and success. The size of the study will determine the number
of the principle investigators to be used (Offredy and Vickers 46). If the hospitals to be involved
in the study will be ten, then the principle investigators will have to be ten. Moreover, the size of
the study will also determine the timeframe required to complete the survey. The cooperation
that the respondents will demonstrate will determine the extent of success that will be observed.
Proposed Chapters of the Report
The study will have a maximum of eight chapters, which will include an introduction,
theoretical framework, aims and objectives, methodology, data analysis, findings,
Surname
6
recommendations and conclusion. The introduction will focus on giving the overview of the
research and the difficulty to be examined. Theoretical framework will concentrate on theories
that apply to the medical training process in the city (Persson, Stirna, and Aggestam 87). They
will give direction on the way forward because they demonstrate how certain theories have been
applied in various countries and their significance. Aims and objectives will focus on what the
study wants to achieve. In this case, the study will be aiming to find out why internal medicine
residency is not meeting the demands of the doctors in the hospitals across Riga city.
Methodology will look at the best research method to employ
to achieve the desired
findings. The data analysis chapter will focus on the approach to be used to make sure the study
is successful (Abrams, Patchan, and Boat 91). It will look at the investigation team; the
timeframe required, and the challenges faced, the limitations and the nature of the results
attained. The findings chapter will now give the results of the survey process, which will lead to
the recommendations (Offredy and Vickers 46). The recommendations chapter will depend on
the findings because it will give solutions to the problems demonstrated by the survey. The
conclusion chapter will sum up the entire survey process.
Problems and Limitations of the Study
The challenges that might be experienced in this study will include funds for paying the
principle investigators and printing the questionnaires, as well as transportation of the personnel
involved and the required materials from one place to another. The limitations will be observed
in terms of consent of the medical schools to be involved and the participation of the respondents
(Melnyk and Fineout-Overholt 82). Some respondents may decide to give false information,
which might act as a limitation because it might interfere with the overall findings. Other
limitations may occur in relation to the methodology selected for the study because different
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
- Access to all documents
- Unlimited textbook solutions
- 24/7 expert homework help
Surname
7
methods have their advantages and disadvantages.
Proposed Time Frame
The period that will be required for this study is approximately one month. However, the
biggest determinant of the timeframe will be the number of health centers to be involved in the
survey because the more they will be a more time will be required (Punch 95). Nevertheless, one
month will be sufficient time to complete the survey because there will be sufficient principle
investigators who are specialized for this work.
Surname
8
Works Cited
Abrams, Michael T, Kathleen M. Patchan, and Thomas F. Boat.
Research Training in Psychiatry
Residency: Strategies for Reform
. Washington, D.C: National Academies Press, 2003.
Internet resource.
Melnyk, Bernadette M, and Ellen Fineout-Overholt.
Evidence-based Practice in Nursing &
Healthcare: A Guide to Best Practice
. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer/Lippincott Williams
& Wilkins, 2011. Print.
Offredy, Maxine, and Peter S. Vickers.
Developing a Healthcare Research Proposal: An
Interactive Student Guide
. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010. Print.
Persson, Anne, Janis Stirna, and Lena Aggestam. "How to Disseminate Professional Knowledge
in Healthcare: the Case of Skaraborg Hospital."
Journal of Cases on Information
Technology
. 10.4 (2008): 41-64. Print.
Punch, Keith.
Developing Effective Research Proposals
. London: SAGE, 2000. Internet
resource.
Roberts, Paula, and Helena Priest.
Healthcare Research: A Handbook for Students and
Practitioners
. Chichester, West Sussex: J. Wiley, 2010. Internet resource.
Sacks, Terence J.
Careers in Medicine
. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2006. Print.
Webb, Carmen.
Taking My Place in Medicine: A Guide for Minority Medical Students
. Thousand
Oaks, Calif: Sage, 2000. Internet resource.