Twenty-First Century Medical Education: A Critical Approach to the Professional Competencies of Health Sciences Educators.
Abstract
Twenty-first-century medical education requires the integration of disciplinary knowledge with pedagogical, ethical, communicative and digital competencies in increasingly complex clinical environments. This opinion article critically examines the foundations of professional teaching competencies in Health Sciences and argues for a context-sensitive approach to their development. Drawing on a purposive narrative synthesis, the AMFEM, Harden and Crosby, CanMEDS, Tuning and WFME frameworks are compared in terms of their target audience, scope and limitations, together with recent research on faculty development, entrustable professional activities and artificial intelligence. Key tensions emerge between standardization and local relevance, observable performance and humanistic education, and individual responsibility and institutional conditions. Eight interrelated competency domains are advanced as an argued conceptual proposal rather than a validated consensus. Faculty professionalization calls for continuing education, mentoring, formative assessment and institutional support. Postgraduate qualifications may be particularly appropriate for specific academic roles but should not be considered a universal requirement.
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