An Urgent Need to Educate Tomorrow’s Doctors on Pandemic Response, Mental Health, and Precision Medicine

Medical students should be educated to face tomorrow’s health challenges. In this article, we discuss how students can be educated to address three major challenges. The focus areas of the manuscript were identified through discussion and consensus among the authors who are health professions educators from different regions with experience in the subject. The databases, “PubMed” and “Google Scholar,” were searched using appropriate keywords. The articles were carefully reviewed by the authors for inclusion. Resilient health systems are essential to address future pandemics. A multidisciplinary One Health approach is required, and pandemic preparedness needs to be integrated in the curriculum. Students should be properly trained before being asked to volunteer during pandemics. Mental health issues are common among medical students, and Internet- and mobile-based interventions may be helpful. They should be encouraged to seek help in a supportive atmosphere. They should be trained in telepsychiatry. Precision medicine and genetics are rapidly advancing. Doctors should be aware of the influence of genomics on health, diseases, and drug action. They should counsel patients on genetic testing results. By educating students on these important areas, physicians will be better equipped to foster an improved healthcare system and a healthier population.