Accreditation of medical schools in Saudi Arabia: A qualitative study

Abstract

This empirical study revealed strong parallels between assessment and accreditation purpose, engagement, and outcomes. Like an increasing number of commentaries in the literature, this study suggests that accreditation bodies would do well to shift toward a holistic approach to quality management in medical education; implementation of quality improvement by an external "other"-described by some participants as the "policeman approach"-is not ideal for promoting sustainable quality education. Sustainable accreditation for long-term education improvement is not presented as a method, but as a way of thinking about important, and often overlooked, aspects of accreditation practice. Sustainable accreditation means that there is a need to meet both the immediate accreditation standards ("the exam") as well as establishing a basis for continuing quality improvement.

The impact of external academic accreditation of undergraduate medical program on students’ satisfaction

“…However, it inherits the limitation of such a cross-sectional and singular approach compared to an approach with a longitudinal (pre-post) assessment or approach that considers reproducibility over more than one accreditation cycle [2]. Blouin et al 10 sought to generate such a framework and explore potential indicators of accreditation effectiveness, value, and impact on medical education utilizing qualitative research design.…”

“…The teaching staff 's perspective and reframing of external accreditation result in higher acceptability of the accreditation as an ongoing improvement tool and strengthening the internal quality improvement system. In a recent qualitative study following the NCAAA accreditation cycle, Alrebish et al 2 elicited an essential theme of accreditation experience related to the perspective towards accreditation and its impact on the sustainability of quality improvement in undergraduate medical education. For instance, the perspective of accreditation as an external audit, and whether the program would pass the exam or not, is less likely to result in a sustainable positive impact on internal quality improvement practices [2].…”

“…Academic accreditation is a formal systematic external review typically mandated by the commissioning or regulatory bodies [ 1 ]. In Saudi Arabia, The National Center for Academic Accreditation and Evaluation (NCAAA) is responsible for accrediting all universities’ undergraduate programs [ 2 ]. This process consists of an in-depth evaluation of the program against sets of standards, covering its structure, processes, practices, procedures, and outcomes.…”

The European Council on Chiropractic Education identification of critical standards to accredit chiropractic programs: a qualitative study and thematic analysis

“…As health care education is evolving and improving continuously through evidence-based research, [2][3][4][5][6][7][8] the standards upon which the educational programs are evaluated also must evolve to reflect these changes. 2,8 Regularly updating the educational standards helps to facilitate implementation of current healthcare educational and assessment procedures and processes into the educational programs. 8 The frequency of reaccreditation evaluations by the ECCE always has been at 3 years after the first accreditation date and subsequently every 5 years if there were no ''concerns'' about the program.…”

“…2,8 Regularly updating the educational standards helps to facilitate implementation of current healthcare educational and assessment procedures and processes into the educational programs. 8 The frequency of reaccreditation evaluations by the ECCE always has been at 3 years after the first accreditation date and subsequently every 5 years if there were no ''concerns'' about the program.…”