Medical admission by literature score

His reputation with patients is not only based on his treatment but also on his empathy and understanding. A treatment session always begins with about 15 minutes of conversation: he will ask simple questions so that the patient can comfortably describe their symptoms as if describing their illness to a friend.

Then, when it came to the technical part, he carefully reviewed the key points to draw conclusions about the disease. My father believed that if the patient was only questioned by filling out the information according to the diagnosis form or according to the doctor's preconceived notions, it would be easy to miss out on unusual symptoms - the link to specific health problems.

At the end of the examination, he often recounts a successful treatment to help the patient feel more optimistic and secure. That is how many doctors share the mental burden with the patient. Treatment requires both physical and mental illness.

The above example shows us that knowledge of physiology is not the only requirement for doctors and medical staff in their relationships with patients and the community.

On July 17, at the conference to review the first 6 months of the year and deploy tasks for the last 6 months of the year at K Hospital, Prof. Dr. Le Van Quang requested to improve the working spirit and attitude of medical staff, after receiving information reflecting on situations where doctors were not attentive and dedicated in medical examination and treatment.

Medical training in recent years has begun to have positive changes to equip future medical staff with communication and conversation skills. In 2024, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine became the first public school to include Literature in the admission combination (combination B03 including Math, Biology, Literature) for nursing and public health. Previously, Van Lang University recruited the medical major with combination D12 (Literature, Chemistry, English) and the nursing major added combination C08 (Literature, Chemistry, Biology).

Nguyen Tat Thanh University considers B03 (Math, Biology, Literature) for Hospital Management, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology considers additional combinations C08 (Literature, Chemistry, Biology), S07 (Math, Chemistry, English) for Pharmacy, Nursing, Medical Laboratory Technology...

However, public opinion has mixed opinions when medical admissions are no longer dominated by Math - Chemistry - Biology as has been the tradition for decades in Vietnam. I understand the concerns of the opposing opinions, but after careful consideration, the Literature score is only included in the admission combinations for majors such as nursing, pharmacy, public health or management...

Viewing medicine as a purely “physical” profession without any psycho-social aspects is a conservative approach. Some studies have shown that, with the increasing diversity of patients in terms of gender, race, religion, income, etc.; intercultural communication skills have become an essential competency for nurses and doctors, directly affecting the effectiveness of the health system.

In training, critical thinking is becoming an increasingly important skill for students, including medical students. It is not only important in making medical decisions under difficult conditions but also in explaining complex medical decisions clearly to the relevant parties (authorities, patients, relatives, etc.). Otherwise, there will always be the potential for conflict, causing difficulties for the treatment process.

Therefore, adding socio-cultural subjects in admission and enhancing communication skills during medical training is inevitable.

Chekhov, a writer and doctor familiar to Vietnamese readers, warned about this problem in his classic short story "A Visit to the Sick". The daughter of a wealthy landowner was diagnosed with heart disease but medicine did not help. Doctor Korolyov, with his subtle social analysis ability, realized that the young lady, who had all the symptoms of heart disease, was actually just poisoned by the cramped provincial society, immersed in alcohol, gambling and capitalist exploitation. Only the joy of life could help her recover. Focusing on the physical illness without paying attention to the mental illness would reduce the effectiveness of the treatment.

Including Literature in particular and social sciences in the entrance exam for medical majors is an innovation in medical admissions, expanding the choice of future human resources for diverse positions in the medical field.

Of course, enrollment is just the first step, the quality of student output depends mainly on the training process. This is an issue that all university training sectors in Vietnam will have to focus on improving, not just medicine.