Survey of attitudes towards curriculum reforms among medical teachers in different socio-economic and cultural environments

Background: Curriculum reforms in medical schools require cultural and conceptual changes from the faculty.Aims and Methods: We assessed attitudes towards curriculum reforms in different academic, economic, and social environments among 776 teachers from 2 Western European medical schools (Belgium and Denmark) and 7 medical schools in 3 countries in post-communist transition (Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina). The survey included a 5-point Likert-type scale on attitudes towards reforms in general and towards reforms of medical curriculum (10 items each).Results: Teaching staff from medical schools in Bosnia and Herzegovina had a more positive attitude towards reforms of medical curriculum (mean score 36.8 out of maximum 50 [95% CI 36.1 to 37.3]) than those from medical schools in Croatia or Slovenia (30.7 [29.8 to 31.6]) or Western Europe (27.7 [27.1 to 28.3]) (P < 0.001, ANOVA). Significant predictors of positive attitudes towards medical curriculum reform in post-communist transition countries,...