There are several reasons why the project needs to be implemented. The scope of the reasons is greater than the scope that the project can cover. For this reason, the project focused on 4 segments that we consider crucial for the transformation of the existing learning model and its improvement:
- The volume of existing information in the medical sciences has reached extreme levels. Also, the scope of research in the field of medicine is exceptional, which leads to the generation of new information and knowledge. It is estimated that nowadays the amount of information in medicine doubles every few years, so that from the moment of enrollment in studies to the moment of retirement of the average doctor, the amount of information needed for his work will be increased by at least 10 times. As a result, it becomes impossible for an individual doctor to manage all this information to use it in an adequate way in their daily work and in accordance with the needs of society. This indicates the need to transform the existing model of learning (repetitive) into a model of learning that will enable the mastery of information in order to solve real problems and greater retention of acquired knowledge. In the process of education in medical sciences, traditional classroom lectures are most often applied (face-to-face, lecture-based), although other forms of teaching are increasingly being tested, improved and introduced: e-learning, blended-learning, problem-based learning, team-based learning, flipped classroom. The process of introducing new innovative models in doctors education in WBC HEIs has not reached the level of EU HEIs. For that reason, the repetition-based learning model is mostly used, which has the consequence that the volume of information adopted during the studies does not lead to a better learning outcome. On the other hand, such a model also prevents the selection of new information in medicine, which has the consequence that the information acquired during the study is not managed properly, nor after the completion of the study new knowledge is implemented in the existing way. Therefore, we conclude that there is no model for the synthesis of information adopted in the process of education and that it is necessary to build it. Also, the learned information is not used to generate new knowledge that will enable the student to better solve real problems that they will encounter in everyday work after graduation.
- Certain e-learning models are included in the WBC HEIs curricula. However, it was the epidemiological situation that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic that brought to the surface that e-learning capacities were not used adequately. It is often the case that these systems are used only to replace the direct presence of lecturers or as digital repositories of teaching materials, most often encouraging passive participation of students in teaching. This indicates the need for digital transformation of e-learning platforms and advanced development of learning modules with the application of maximum innovation of teachers and the creation of a new learning model with the active role of both teachers and students. E-learning models should be used for the advanced use of information in acquiring problem-solving knowledge.
- The education of doctors contains specifics that make it different from the education of other professions. In order for a medical student to successfully perform the duties of a doctor after graduation, it is necessary that, in certain situations, their procedure / procedure of treatment or prevention of disease is 100% successful, because less success can result in loss of life. Thus, for example, in a certain procedure that includes 6 steps, the doctor can act correctly in 5 (80% success) and make a mistake in only one (20% error), which will lead to a fatal outcome for the patient. In the process of adapting WBC HEIs to so-called Bologna process, not enough attention was paid to these specific needs in the education of doctors. That is why it happened that in a certain number of curricula, the norm of the required 51% of correct answers for successfully taking the exam from a given course was adopted. This directly caused students not to be able to complete the procedures required in their work after graduation, but they need a period of adjustment and new learning, which leads to multiple losses both in health care institutions and in society as a whole. By applying the MCPB module in learning, in cases when it is needed, tasks will be created that require the application of knowledge to solve problems as a whole, in accordance with the real situations that the doctor encounters in their practice.
- There are not enough capacities in WBC HEIs to improve the teaching process by applying new learning models. There are partial human and technical capacities for that, but they are insufficient. The teaching staff is not adequately trained to implement innovative and creative solutions in the educational process. Also, there are not enough trained administrative and technical staff who will adequately monitor the teaching process with the new learning model and provide it with the necessary support. In addition, the technical capacities in WBC HEIs are diverse and often underdeveloped for the development, implementation and application of new learning models.