An interview with the founding dean of the European Medical School Oldenburg-Groningen, Prof Dr Eckhart Hahn: On the sense of community among the players, the establishment of university clinics and the selection of students - who have significantly more learning time in Oldenburg.
The model degree course in human medicine has been set up, the first students will arrive on 1 October and the European Medical School Oldenburg-Groningen will officially open ten days later. What else is on the agenda until then?
Hahn: We still have a lot of work to do. However, it is particularly important to me to achieve even greater unity between all the players in the new School of Medicine.
How can we succeed in creating a sense of unity among so many stakeholders from the university and clinics?
Hahn: I think we are on the right track - this was also demonstrated at our faculty weekend. Bringing everyone together, talking to each other in an informal atmosphere and exchanging ideas - there's no substitute for that. And involving students in the process has proven to be extremely constructive and important.
The project envisages the establishment of university clinic areas. How do you envisage this in concrete terms?
Hahn: First of all, you need to know that there are two different models of university hospitals in Germany: the co-operation model and the integration model. In the integration model, School and hospital management are located together - coordinated by a joint management body, as in Hanover and Göttingen. The cooperation model, on the other hand, aims for the School and university hospital to act as separate units, with their own managements - which are linked to each other in an advisory - "cooperative" - manner.
So a cooperation model for Oldenburg?
Hahn: It will be a special form of cooperation model - which has not been realised anywhere else so far. On the one hand, we have a university with a School of Medicine and, on the other, the clinics with their various sponsors. The model was invented around 35 years ago in Bochum. Inevitably, mistakes were made back then that continue to have an impact today. We in Oldenburg can learn from these experiences and optimise the model.
In what form should it be optimised?
Hahn: For example, that the university and state government conclude a bilateral contract with each clinic and its sponsor, in which responsibilities as well as research and teaching are regulated. In addition, there is an overarching framework agreement that forges the parties involved into a university medical centre. Believe me, the creation of such an umbrella structure is a fascinating process. All those involved are putting in an incredible amount of effort. I am convinced that there will be no model that is as efficient as the Oldenburg adaptation of the co-operation model.
What hurdles does the European cross-border approach entail?
Hahn: I have been involved with the Bologna Process for many years. I have noticed this: The international component and the language problems are often pushed aside. Bringing 27 countries with 27 different languages into a common medical meeting place is no trivial matter. Especially as the patients also speak different languages. Our German-Dutch - i.e. European - project is therefore somewhat pioneering.
Students are not only selected on the basis of their A-level grades, but other criteria should also play a role...
Hahn: That's right. The Abitur grade is a good indicator of study and examination ability. But so far there is no scientific evidence as to what the Abitur grade really means in terms of employability. And that's what matters: The medical profession requires a good short-term and long-term memory - but you also need to be able to communicate with people. This flows into our selection procedure. By the way: Our 30-year long-term study will show how meaningful the Abitur grade actually is.
How does the university actually select the students?
Hahn: The university allocates 24 of the 40 study places according to its own criteria, while 16 students are selected by the Foundation for University Admissions. If we stick with the 24 places that we award, the selection process will be as follows: 51 per cent will be based on A-level grades - as stipulated by case law. The remaining 49 per cent is made up of the assessment of communication skills and other personal characteristics.
What about the 16 students who are selected via the foundation?
Hahn: The Abitur grade is the first selection criterion, but we have built in two ways to "neutralise" it somewhat. For example, if someone has already learnt an academic appointment related to medicine, they receive a bonus of 0.5 on their A-level grade. We also do the test for medical degree programmes, the so-called TMS test, which - if it is successful - tops the Abitur grade.
How is the degree programme structured?
Hahn: There are four modules of ten weeks each per year. This means that our students have 40 semester weeks - considerably more than in a traditional degree programme. A 7-day week is planned, with courses on five days. The first day of a teaching week is Wednesday. The weekend is therefore "in the middle". This gives students time in between to work through what they have learnt.
What do the students start their medical training with?
Hahn: The first module deals with the musculoskeletal system, orthopaedics and anatomy. Each week of a module deals with a specific medical problem. The first day begins with a lecture in which a patient takes part and talks about their illness. This direct contact is important to us: the students learn right from the start that they are dealing with people who are suffering.
What else is part of a module week?
Hahn: The students have further lectures and seminars on the topic. They also work independently in groups on certain facets of the weekly topic. There are also courses in physiology, biochemistry, histology, clinical chemistry - all the things that are included in the medical licence regulations. And the students repeatedly carry out small research projects in groups. At the end of the six-year programme, this culminates in 20 weeks of scientific work. A "longitudinal research curriculum" runs through the entire degree programme - and more intensively than elsewhere, as we simply have more time due to the longer semesters.
Doesn't the high number of semester weeks put too much strain on the students?
Hahn: On the contrary. In the Netherlands and other European countries, it is normal to have a much longer academic year. Students have more learning time and opportunities for personal development. According to the EU directive, a medical student must complete 5,500 hours of classroom learning. If you only have 24 weeks per year to do this in six years - as in traditional degree programmes - then you really have to cram students in.
