Dr. Antonio Cubilla, the scientific advisor to the Presidency of the Republic, has raised concerns about the quality of education in numerous Faculties of Medical Sciences across the country. In a recent discussion organized by the Academy of Medicine, Dr. Cubilla highlighted the need to address the educational precariousness in medical schools and proposed new measures to prevent the proliferation of poor quality medical specialties.
During the discussion, Dr. Cubilla suggested that a new bill should be presented to prevent the authorization of additional faculties of medical specialties in both public and private universities. He also recommended suspending accreditations of existing courses and reviewing the accreditation conditions set by the National Agency for Evaluation and Accreditation of Higher Education (Aneaes).
Dr. Cubilla emphasized that the issue at hand is not just about the number of fields of practice or the quantity of teachers and students in Health Sciences, but rather about the quality of medical education as a whole. He stressed the detrimental effects that the current situation may have on the general population and the medical profession.
The friction between the doctors’ union and the president of the National Council of Higher Education (Cones), Federico Mora, has escalated, with the Paraguayan Circle of Physicians (CPM) calling for Mora’s resignation. However, Mora has defended his position and criticized the specialists, suggesting that they are not adapting to modern technologies and systems.
The conflicting views between Dr. Cubilla, the doctors’ union, and the head of Cones illustrate the ongoing debate surrounding the quality of medical education in Paraguay. The proposed measures by Dr. Cubilla aim to address the existing challenges and improve the overall standards of medical education in the country.