WFME recognition does not guarantee that all medical school graduates are at the same level.
When WFME assesses a country’s accrediting authority it looks at their quality assurance framework to make sure it conforms to a particular internationally-accepted formula. (For details see here).
This does not, however, guarantee that all WFME-recognized medical education systems produce graduates who are at the same level.
To quote WFME:
“Agencies do not need to meet all criteria in full to be awarded Recognition Status, provided that there is reasonable justification why a criterion is not appropriate in the context in which the agency operates.
The award of Recognition Status confirms that the policies and procedures followed by an agency are appropriate in the region(s) where the agency operates.”
WFME Criteria
“Appropriate” May Vary
“Appropriate” in one region may not be appropriate in another. Here’s an example to illustrate:
In some resource-scarce countries, doctors often emigrate to seek improved conditions elsewhere. This can leave a dearth of highly-qualified physicians to do the teaching in the medical schools. Little can be done and the country’s schools must make do with what they have. Ultimately, their medical education won’t be at the same level as a country with better resources.
Yet that country’s accrediting authority may still qualify for WFME recognition if their quality assurance system is in place and working effectively.
It’s About Continuous Assessment and Improvement
The idea of the “recognition” system is not to guarantee that all international doctors graduate at the same level, but to ensure that a country has in place a system to continuously assess and improve the education its medical schools deliver. With such a system in place, provided it works properly, that country’s medical education will improve over time. It is the effective functioning of this system of continuous assessment that WFME is examining.
