Transforming Health Science Education in Ethiopia: The Rise of Competency-Based Curriculum in Anesthesia Programs
In the past three years, there has been a significant transformation in medical and health science education programs through the introduction of a competency-based curriculum. This innovative approach, known as outcome-based education through a competency-based curriculum, aims to enhance the quality of education for graduates entering the healthcare workforce in Ethiopia. As part of this reform, anesthesia programs have aligned themselves with the government’s curriculum guidelines.
Currently, all 33 higher education institutions and health sciences colleges offering preservice anesthesia education in Ethiopia have adopted the competency-based curriculum. To ensure successful implementation of the competency-based curriculum, the USAID Health Workforce Improvement Program has provided support to the Ethiopian Association of Anesthetists. Together, they conducted a three-day “Training of Trainers” session to enhance the instructors’ capacity in delivering competency-based education. Participants in the session represented universities such as Adama Health Science College, Arsi University, Addis Ababa University, Adama Hospital Medical College, Woliyta Sodo University, Dilla University, University of Gondar, and Debre Birhan University.
The “Training of Trainers” session covered various aspects to equip the instructors for their future training responsibilities. These included the principles of competency-based curriculum, teaching and learning strategies, student assessment methods, use of education technology, monitoring of the curriculum’s effectiveness, and facilitation skills.
Furthermore, the Ethiopian Association of Anesthetists and Jhpiego Ethiopia have introduced a digitized competency-based curriculum and educational quality monitoring dashboard. This nationwide system allows real-time monitoring of quality improvement progress and provides support to higher education institutions in achieving their educational goals. The dashboard collects data from students, faculties, and program leads. Utilizing the knowledge and skills acquired during the workshop, the trainers will utilize the competency-based curriculum and education quality improvement dashboard to assess the performance before and after the capacity building session. This will help track the implementation progress and measure the impact of the training on educational outcomes.
