Museums in medical education: a narrative review

Abstract: Introduction: Non-formal education occurs outside the traditional teaching environment, with structured educational objectives and the promotion of student autonomy to explore spaces, such as in libraries and museums. Museums offer a wide range of themes and can encompass different determinants of the health and disease process. Objective: To outline the situation of museums as a form of extended curriculum in Brazilian medical schools. Method: This is a narrative review conducted from February to July 2021. The study was developed from the analysis, as well as the relevant literature, of three main documents: National Curriculum Guidelines for the Medicine Course 2014, National Policy for Museum Education (PNEM) 2017 and Guidelines for Outreach Programs in Brazilian Higher Education 2018. The descriptors “Medical Education” and “Museums” and their equivalents in Portuguese were used in the search for works published in the databases. Result: Museums provide a redefinition of the collection’s own specialized knowledge, with the potential to develop clinical skills related to perception, investigation and creative thinking, contributing to the medical student to perceive themselves as an agent of their practices and postures, in addition to offering a space to give voice to health service users. According to the PNEM, museum education should promote a direct interaction between the museum and society, seeking social transformation, in line with the concept of outreach activities, which will represent at least 10% of the learning hours of undergraduate medical training. Therefore, the museum is a means for outreach activities to be developed, connecting teaching and research, including and involving the academic community in the external community. About 26 museums were found, mainly concentrated in the south-southeast axis, whose main themes are the history of medicine, biographies and human anatomy, health and life. Conclusion: Museum education in medicine, through outreach programs, can impact the progressive redefinition of concepts about the health and disease process, with a consequent transformation of the vocational exercise for care, whether in terms of promotion, prevention, recovery or rehabilitation.