The 11th Thai Medical Education Conference, “Globalization and Medical Education,” was hosted by the Faculty of Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, in Bangkok, Thailand, March 27-29, 2010. The conference provided an opportunity for participants to discuss medical education strategies and processes with a view toward improving healthcare services in South East Asia. The focus of discourse was on meeting the changing demands of today’s globalized society.
The conference was supported by the Consortium of Thai Medical Schools, the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME), and by Chulalongkorn University. Attendees included WFME President Stefan Lindgren; members of the WFME Executive Council, including Chair of the FAIMER Board of Directors and Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) President Emmanuel G. Cassimatis; President of the Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE) Madalena Folque Patrício; President of the Association of Medical Schools in Europe (AMSE) David Gordon; President of Chulalongkorn University Pirom Kamolratanakul; executive committee members of the South East Asia Regional Association of the World Federation for Medical Education (SEARAME), including PSG-FAIMER Regional Institute Director Thomas Chacko (PHIL 2004) and FAIMER faculty member Rita Sood (PHIL 2005); members of WHO; and delegates from Thailand. Executive-level meetings of both WFME and SEARAME were held in conjunction with the conference.
Among the numerous presentations given at the conference were the following key lectures:
Impact of Free Trade Agreement on Health Professional Education
Pirom Kamolratanakul, President, Chulalongkorn University
Roles of Medical Doctors towards the Next Decades
Stefan Lindgren, President, WFME
The Avicenna Directories for Medicine—Understanding the World’s Medical Schools
David Gordon, President, Association of Medical Schools in Europe (AMSE)
The Bologna Process and Sharing Medical Education Resources
Madalena Patrício, President, Association for Medical Education in Europe (AMEE)
Public Health Role of Doctors in a Globalized World: A WHO Perspective
Myint Htwe, Director, Program Managment, WHO South East Asia Regional Office (SEARO)
The Global Environment of Health Professions Education—WHO Perspective (Building and Sustaining the Health Workforce: The Grand Challenges)
Dr. Maureen Birmingham, WHO Representative to Thailand
