The process of formative assessment from the Weisbord model in medical education

Abstract

Introduction: Organisations are open dynamic systems with particular regard to the tasks and functions required to achieve the objectives determined by the structure. In this sense, an organisational diagnosis must be made in order to determine areas of opportunity when the educational organisation (Faculty of Medicine, UNAM) establishes a new strategy for meeting its corporate objectives, in this case through the implementation of a formative assessment.

Objective: To make an organisational diagnosis using a Weisbord model consisting of a 6- category analysis of the organization.

Method: It was decided to use the qualitative method for understanding the social phenomena involved, using an open-response questionnaire to examine the different steps of the assessment process. Three focal groups and 12 interviews subsequently took place until the saturation point was reached. The categorising and coding of the results was performed according to previously constructed category tree, and finally were analysed supported by the Weisbord model.
Results: The diagnosis results focused on the internal affairs of the organisation, and mainly posed questions that have to do with the fit between of ‘‘what is and what should be’’ in the 6 categories from the Weisbord model (purpose, structure, relationships, rewards, leadership, and helpful mechanisms).

Conclusions: A consistent use of formative assessment in the system can help those involved in confronting the obstacles that emerged by performing their professional practice in the clinic and in the classroom more broadly.