Abstract
Health workforce is one of the most important factors of health system. However, global society and Thailand have currently faced with shortage and maldistribution of health personnel especially rural doctors. This problem may affect the achievement of Millennium Development Goals and equity in accessing to health services. To solve the problem of rural doctor shortage, it needs systematic approach starting from medical education. Thai government has established the Collaborative Project to Increase Production of Rural Doctors: CPIRD with collaboration between the Ministry of Public Health and Ministry of Education to solve the problem since 1994. This article presents a good case study of transformative learning of Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital’s Medical Educational Center related to the activity “Medical camp for enhancing experiences of medical students”. This camp is an extra-curricular activity
using transformative learning. Outcomes of this activity are to enhance medical students to understand
rural people as a whole, be familiar with rural contexts, and be satisfied with rural work, as well as gain the skills required from the CPIRD and needed for the 21st century. This activity has also affected the development of teaching and learning processes of the medical instructors following the framework of transformative learning. Therefore, educational institutes producing physicians and other health professionals should organize this kind of co-curricular activity to enhance rural and inter-professional experiences of students who will become health professionals in the future. The Ministry of Public Health and the Ministry of Education may consider this activity to be policy for developing education of health professionals in the 21st century. However, systematic and continuous outcome evaluation of the activity is needed in order to develop a more beneficial and effective co-curriculum.
