Howard Barrows
Encyclopedia
Howard S. Barrows, M.D. (March 28, 1928 – March 25, 2011) was a Professor Emeritus at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
where he had previously served as Associate Dean for Educational Affairs and Chair of Medical Education. Trained as a neurologist, Barrows is best known today for his many innovations in medical education, particularly teaching using Problem-Based Learning (PBL)
, assessing clinical skills using simulated patient
s, and studying clinical reasoning using stimulated recall techniques.
in 1949. He attended medical school at University of Southern California (USC) College of Medicine
and completed his M.D. in 1953. He interned at Lennox Hill Hospital in New York city and subsequently served two years at Parks Air Force Base in California as a medical officer. Barrows returned to New York city in 1957 to complete his residency in neurology at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center.
Barrows joined the USC faculty in 1960, advancing to the rank of Professor of Neurology. In 1971, he joined the recently founded Faculty of Medicine at McMaster University
in Hamilton Ontario. A decade later, he was recruited to serve as the Associate Dean for Educational Affairs at Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Medicine
in Springfield, Illinois. At SIU he was instrumental in establishing a PBL
track modeled after the Problem-Based Curriculum at McMaster. Under his direction, SIU became a center for the development of PBL
teaching materials and faculty training. He played an instrumental role in creating the journal Teaching and Learning in Medicine and served as an associate editor for many years. He also established the Problem-Based Learning Institute in conjunction with the local public school district to promote the use of PBL
in secondary education. After his retirement in 1999, Barrows and his wife Phyllis returned to Hamilton, Ontario.
Over his long and productive career, Barrows was to receive a number of prestigious awards. He was the first recipient of the John P. Hubbard Award from the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) in 1984 and was later to receive the Abraham Flexner
award from the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC).
Traditionally, the assessment student learning in medical education has relied almost entirely on written exams. But there would seem to be more to being a competent practitioner than could ever be assessed using a paper and pencil test. Barrows' pioneering work on training actors to serve as simulated patient
s opened the door to a new way of evaluating clinical skills. Simulated patients could be used to test the students' interactional and problem-solving skills. This kind of "performance-based" assessment has now been incorporated into national licensure exams for all U.S. medical students.
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine is an allopathic medical school located in Springfield, Illinois, the state capital. It is part of the Southern Illinois University system, which includes a campus in Edwardsville as well as the flagship in Carbondale. The medical school was founded...
where he had previously served as Associate Dean for Educational Affairs and Chair of Medical Education. Trained as a neurologist, Barrows is best known today for his many innovations in medical education, particularly teaching using Problem-Based Learning (PBL)
Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a subject in the context of complex, multifaceted, and realistic problems...
, assessing clinical skills using simulated patient
Simulated patient
A simulated patient, standardized patient or sample patient , in health care, is an individual who is trained to act as a real patient in order to simulate a set of symptoms or problems. Simulated patients have been successfully used in medical education, nursing education, evaluation, and...
s, and studying clinical reasoning using stimulated recall techniques.
Biography
Barrows was born in Oak Park, Illinois on March 28, 1928. He attended a community college in San Mateo, California and went on to complete a BA in Zoology at the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1949. He attended medical school at University of Southern California (USC) College of Medicine
Keck School of Medicine of USC
The Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California is a major center of medical research, education and patient care. Founded in 1885, the Keck School of Medicine is the oldest medical school in Southern California.Located on the university’s Health Sciences campus three miles ...
and completed his M.D. in 1953. He interned at Lennox Hill Hospital in New York city and subsequently served two years at Parks Air Force Base in California as a medical officer. Barrows returned to New York city in 1957 to complete his residency in neurology at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center.
Barrows joined the USC faculty in 1960, advancing to the rank of Professor of Neurology. In 1971, he joined the recently founded Faculty of Medicine at McMaster University
McMaster Faculty of Health Sciences
The McMaster Faculty of Health Sciences is one of six faculties at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The faculty was established in 1974 to oversee the School of Nursing, the School of Medicine, and Graduate programs in health sciences...
in Hamilton Ontario. A decade later, he was recruited to serve as the Associate Dean for Educational Affairs at Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Medicine
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Southern Illinois University School of Medicine is an allopathic medical school located in Springfield, Illinois, the state capital. It is part of the Southern Illinois University system, which includes a campus in Edwardsville as well as the flagship in Carbondale. The medical school was founded...
in Springfield, Illinois. At SIU he was instrumental in establishing a PBL
Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a subject in the context of complex, multifaceted, and realistic problems...
track modeled after the Problem-Based Curriculum at McMaster. Under his direction, SIU became a center for the development of PBL
Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a subject in the context of complex, multifaceted, and realistic problems...
teaching materials and faculty training. He played an instrumental role in creating the journal Teaching and Learning in Medicine and served as an associate editor for many years. He also established the Problem-Based Learning Institute in conjunction with the local public school district to promote the use of PBL
Problem-based learning
Problem-based learning is a student-centered pedagogy in which students learn about a subject in the context of complex, multifaceted, and realistic problems...
in secondary education. After his retirement in 1999, Barrows and his wife Phyllis returned to Hamilton, Ontario.
Over his long and productive career, Barrows was to receive a number of prestigious awards. He was the first recipient of the John P. Hubbard Award from the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) in 1984 and was later to receive the Abraham Flexner
Abraham Flexner
Abraham Flexner was an American educator. His Flexner Report, published in 1910, reformed medical education in the United States...
award from the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC).
Innovations in Medical Education
Early in his career, Barrows conducted basic research on clinical reasoning processes. When he joined the Faculty of Medicine at McMaster, the undergraduate curriculum was just in the process of being designed. Barrows argued that the teaching of medicine should be organized in a way that emulates the reasoning of a skilled practitioner. Rather than presenting information to students in a decontextualized, discipline-based way, Barrows proposed that students should be allowed to engage new information in the context of solving authentic clinical problems. In the course of exploring a problem, students in a PBL curriculum identify deficiencies in their understanding and identify their own resources for redressing these deficiencies. This is thought to foster skills for life-long learning.Traditionally, the assessment student learning in medical education has relied almost entirely on written exams. But there would seem to be more to being a competent practitioner than could ever be assessed using a paper and pencil test. Barrows' pioneering work on training actors to serve as simulated patient
Simulated patient
A simulated patient, standardized patient or sample patient , in health care, is an individual who is trained to act as a real patient in order to simulate a set of symptoms or problems. Simulated patients have been successfully used in medical education, nursing education, evaluation, and...
s opened the door to a new way of evaluating clinical skills. Simulated patients could be used to test the students' interactional and problem-solving skills. This kind of "performance-based" assessment has now been incorporated into national licensure exams for all U.S. medical students.