How to use curriculum mapping to ensure a coherent and coordinated learning spiral in a competency-based medical curriculum across two medical universities.

Background: Evaluation of competency-based medical curricula is still a challenge. Curriculum mapping comprises all learning objectives for the learning events which are (usually) mapped to a national framework. This study evaluates coherence within the learning spiral across two consecutive competency-based curricula by usage of curricular maps.

Methods: Curriculum mapping data of two undergraduate medical curricula (Bachelor and consecutive Master) from two different Swiss universities was used to evaluate a given topic (in our case cardiology) related to continuity and increasing complexity. In addition, coverage of the Swiss national framework ('PROFILES') was assessed.

Results: A continuous exposure to cardiovascular content across the two programs as well as an increasing complexity was found. The analysis further showed that most parts of the national Swiss framework ('PROFILES') are covered to some extent and revealed missing coverage of some parts of the first chapter ('General Objectives') and second chapter ('Entrustable Professional activities').

Conclusion: The results support the implicit notion that the medical curriculum across two universities can be coherent and provide the necessary structure to enable a coordinated learning spiral. The approach can be used for any curriculum which has been mapped to a framework to evaluate the coherence and coordination of a learning spiral in each field. This approach can be very valuable especially for medical programs where students change from one institution to another.