Resources for medical education: finding the right prescription.

What are the resources necessary to provide the highest quality education for medical students? This is the essential question which must be answered before a medical school can make a rational decision about the number of students to have in each class. In deciphering an objective way to determine the class size of a medical school, this paper explores the principles of medical education, accrediting organizations institutional expectations in providing a medical education program, and the author's personal experiences. The central tenets of a quality medical education include: learning by doing, student-centered learning, and the transmission of the attitudes, values and behaviors of the medical profession. This paper considers how these core components of medical education can be achieved and what resources are necessary to ensure that all students are appropriately supported.