Problems and perceived needs for medical ethics education of resident physicians in Alexandria teaching hospitals, Egypt

There is a call for greater preparation for the ethical challenges encountered by physicians in their future professional duties. This study in Egypt aimed to reveal problems and perceived needs for medical ethics education of resident physicians working at University of Alexandria hospitals. In a descriptive, cross-sectional survey, 128 residents answered a self-administered questionnaire. More than half were of the opinion that their medical ethics course was ineffective; 56.3% mentioned poor curricular planning. The majority complained that the subject was not tailored to specialties, the course was too short, there was a shortage of resources to facilitate the educational process and that assessment was done for knowledge but not for skills. Problems related to staffing were low staff:student ratios and staff lack of experience. Trainees, regardless of clinical discipline, felt that there was a great need for improvement to their medical ethics education.