The Accreditation Commission on Colleges of Medicine

STANDARDS - Elements of Accreditation ©

Governments, Medical Schools, other professional or educational bodies who wish to receive the full text of the Elements of Accreditation may apply by email to the ACCM Secretariat.

BRIEF OVERVIEW OF ELEMENTS:

• Element 1: Educational Goals:  The medical school must sponsor an MD progamme and have defined and published its mission and educational goals.  It must evaluate outcomes using objective measures and ensure its graduates have acquired the knowledge, skills, and professional attributes expected of physicians. 

• Element 2:  Corporate Organisation: The medical school must be licensed by the country in which it is located to offer courses of instruction in medicine and to award the MD degree.  It must be governed by an independent and voluntary Board of Trustees.

• Element 3:  Medical School Management:  There must be an efficient and adequate administrative structure with sufficient faculty and staff for effective delivery of the educational programme. 

• Element 4: Curriculum:  A curriculum appropriate to the educational goals, and of at least 130 weeks duration, must have been developed by a curriculum committee composed of faculty and administration.  It must include didactic and practical instruction in the basic medical sciences, followed by instruction in the clinical sciences with supervised training in hospital and ambulatory settings, taught with an integrated and multidisciplinary approach.  Appropriate professional attitudes, behaviour, conduct, integrity and ethics are required attributes within the entire programme.  Designated conditions for clinical training are outlined, as well as requirements for evaluating the quality and effectiveness of the curriculum and instruction given to the medical students.

• Element 5:  Student Promotion and Evaluation:  Carefully developed methods for assessing students’ skills, knowledge and proficiencies must be developed by the medical school and overseen by a promotions and evaluation committee.  Student counselling must be in place throughout the programme.  Students must pass USMLE Step 1 prior to proceeding to clinical training and must pass USMLE Step 2 (CS and CK) as a prerequisite to graduation.

• Element 6:  Admissions:  Appropriate policies on admission, readmission, transfer students, visiting students and student dismissals must be in place.  Student body size must be appropriate to the medical school’s resources.

• Element 7:  Fiscal Resources:  The medical school must have sufficient resources and reserves to carry out the educational programme.  There are designated requirements in matters of institutional debt, budget planning and compliance, fees and student refunds, and loan default prevention programme.

• Element 8:  Faculty and Instructional Personnel:  Faculty must be appropriately qualified and experienced to competently teach in their area of instruction.  The number of faculty must be sufficient to fulfil the medical school’s educational goals.  Defined policy on selection and appointment of faculty is required, and there should be opportunities for faculty to collaborate in research, and to have opportunities for professional growth and continuing medical education.  Matters of faculty compensation, professional security, academic freedom, workload, evaluation and promotion criteria and procedures are also addressed.

• Element 9:  Library:  This section outlines the requirements for the size, design, facilities and resources of the library, including staff, including audio, visual, computer and internet facilities.

• Element 10:  Student Services:  The requirements for publications and information to be available to students are given, as well as access to academic or personal counselling and guidance, student health services, and student financial aid and budgeting

• Element 11:  Facilities and Equipment:  The medical school must have on campus buildings, equipment, and facilities sufficient for its goals, together with all necessary services.  The hospitals used for clinical training should have ACGME approval (US) or a SIFT agreement (UK) and offer the appropriate range of clinical disciplines for student training.  There must be proper affiliation agreements in place with these hospitals and the medical school must ensure that the educational experience at the hospitals to which its students are assigned are of equal quality and meet the requirements of the curriculum.  There must be direct control and supervision of the delivery of the clinical programme by the clinical deans, department chairs and faculty.