Accreditation of medical schools in Saudi Arabia: A qualitative study

This empirical study revealed strong parallels between assessment and accreditation purpose, engagement, and outcomes. Like an increasing number of commentaries in the literature, this study suggests that accreditation bodies would do well to shift toward a holistic approach to quality management in medical education; implementation of quality improvement by an external "other"-described by some participants as the "policeman approach"-is not ideal for promoting sustainable quality education. Sustainable accreditation for long-term education improvement is not presented as a method, but as a way of thinking about important, and often overlooked, aspects of accreditation practice. Sustainable accreditation means that there is a need to meet both the immediate accreditation standards ("the exam") as well as establishing a basis for continuing quality improvement.