Assessment of the first course of physiopathology for military medicine in general medicine curriculum

The general medicine program in Iran includes four curricular phases: basic sciences, physiopathology, externship, and internship. The 1-year phase of physiopathology involves internal medicine, pharmacology, semiology (symptom and clinical examination skills), and pathology. Today, countries have designed specific curricula to train military physicians as part of general and specialized physicians. One of the issues that physicians in military medicine should pay attention to is new wars and methods of preventing and defending them. This research was done to examine the importance of human resources in military medicine and to study the readiness and professionalization of medical students. The aim of this study is to respond appropriately in military and critical situations. This research used a mixed-method approach. In the qualitative phase, a needs assessment questionnaire was designed, and the data were obtained from the analysis of the content of articles and opinions of 15 experts and university professors. In the quantitative phase, the Delphi method and snowball sampling were used. The questionnaire was completed by available samples who were 20 teachers and 25 students participating in the course. The evaluated indicators of the questionnaire were obtained from three categories: content, teacher, and system. Based on results, a three-credit course of military medicine training was added to the general medicine physiopathology phase and offered in four weeks in a theoretical-practical manner. The results also showed the importance of teaching military medicine training in physiopathology courses and using up-to-date resources of military medicine. This course can play a very important role in preparing general medical students for military contexts and critical situations.