The visit marked an important milestone in the evaluation of the programme's implementation, bringing together leading experts in medical education to assess its educational quality and provide strategic recommendations for its continuous improvement. According to the Director of the Integrated Master's Degree in Medicine, Firmino Machado, the committee plays a key role in ensuring the programme meets the highest standards of medical education.
The Advisory Committee comprises internationally recognised experts from several universities, including Berent Prakken (Faculty of Medicine, Utrecht University, the Netherlands), Cristina Silva (School of Medicine, University of Minho, Portugal), Jaime Branco (NOVA Medical School – NOVA University Lisbon, Portugal), Jason Frank (Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada), Pia Strand (Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Sweden), and Ana Sérgio Silva (School of Medicine, Swansea University, United Kingdom).
The two-day programme included a welcome session, presentations on the main challenges and opportunities encountered during the first six months of the programme, a review of academic performance and educational activities, and visits to two partner institutions involved in clinical training in both primary healthcare and hospital settings. The committee also met with academic staff, technical teams, and medical students through a series of discussion forums.
According to Juliana Sá, Coordinator of the Medical Education Unit, the Advisory Committee's visit reinforces the University of Aveiro's commitment to excellence in medical education, founded on the principles of innovation, quality, and national and international collaboration.