A Residência Médica (RM) está consagrada como a melhor forma de inserção de médicos na vida profissional e de capacitação numa especialidade. Observa-se uma discrepância entre o número de formandos candidatos à RM e o número de vagas credenciadas. Nesse contexto, alunos do quinto e sexto anos sacrificam a graduação médica durante os estágios curriculares para se dedicarem aos Cursos Preparatórios (CPs) para a RM. Buscou-se conhecer as expectativas dos alunos de Medicina em relação à RM, bem como suas opiniões sobre o surgimento dos CPs. Foram aplicados questionários com oito perguntas objetivas a 70,83% dos alunos do sétimo, oitavo e nono períodos da Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Todos afirmaram conhecer o método dos CPs; 76% pretendem se matricular; dos que não têm essa intenção, 63,17%, o principal motivo declarado é a falta de condições financeiras; 59,45% desaprovam o método atual de avaliação para a RM. Conclui-se que é necessário adequar os atuais métodos de ensino da FM ao modelo das avaliações da RM. Os critérios para o ingresso na RM poderiam ser ajustados, contemplando as habilidades práticas. As FMs devem, continuamente, disponibilizar material didático atualizado, moderno e acessível a todos os alunos.

Medical Residency (MR) is known as the best form for a doctor to start his professional life and to developing his skills in a specialty. There is however a discrepancy between the number of graduate/ candidates for Medical Residency and the number of vacancies. In this context, students in the 5th and 6th years of Medical School are sacrificing their medical graduation during their internships to dedicate themselves to Preparatory Courses (PCs) for the Medical Residency. This study sought to investigate the expectations of the students with regard to RM as well as/ their opinion about the creation of the PCs. 70.83% of the students of the 7th, 8th and 9th semesters/ of the Medical School (MS) answered questionnaires with eight objective questions. They all stated to know the PC method; 76%/ intended to enroll; out of those who did not intend on to enroll, 63.17% claim that the/ main reason/ is poor financial conditions. 59.45% disapproves the current method of admission tests for MR. In conclusion, it is necessary to adapt the current teaching methods of the medical school to the model of admission tests for MR. The criteria for admission to MR should be adjusted, also considering the practical skills. The medical schools should always make inexpensive, up-to-date and modern educational material available to the students.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the publication rate of orally-presented abstracts from the 2003 Urological Brazilian Meeting, as well as the factors determining this publication rate. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The publication rate of the 313 orally-presented abstracts at the 2003 Urological Brazilian Meeting was evaluated by scanning the Lilacs, Scielo and Medline databases. The time between presentation and publication, the state and country of the abstract, the research methodology (cross-sectional, case-control, retrospective case series, prospective case series or clinical trial), whether drugs were utilized and the topic of the study were all characterized. RESULTS: Thirty-nine percent of the abstracts were published after a median time of 14 months (range: 1 to 51 months). There were high publication rates for cross-sectional abstracts (75%), drug utilization studies (51.3%), clinical trials (50%) and prospective case series' (48.1%). However, there was only a moderate statistical trend towards a higher publication rate in the prospective case series (p=0.07), while the retrospective case series' showed statistically lower publication rates than the other groups (33.7%, p=0.04). Abstracts on laparoscopic surgery had the highest publication rate (61.9%, p=0.03) compared to others topics. In 57% of the unpublished abstracts, there was no interest in or attempt to publish, and rejection was responsible for the lack of publication of only 4% of the abstracts. CONCLUSION: The publication rate of the orally-presented abstracts from the 2003 Urological Brazilian Meeting was comparable to that of international congresses. The subsequent publication of presented abstracts and the selection of prospective studies with stronger evidence should be encouraged and may improve the scientific quality of the meeting.

No Brasil, há um déficit de vagas para Residência Médica (RM) e maior concorrência em determinadas especialidades ou regiões, propiciando o crescimento dos Cursos Preparatórios (CPs) para provas de RM. Os acadêmicos, cada vez mais, deixam atividades curriculares em segundo plano e se matriculam nesses cursinhos. Mediante um questionário dirigido aos candidatos do concurso de RM do Hospital Universitário da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (HU-UFJF), realizou-se um estudo para avaliar a efetividade da preparação de alunos em CPs. A adesão foi de 74,7% dos 368 concorrentes, sendo que a maioria freqüentou CPs (72%). Não houve diferença significativa de aprovação entre os candidatos que se prepararam em CPs e os que não os freqüentaram. Já a média das notas dos candidatos que freqüentaram CPs foi 4,07 pontos maior (66,89 contra 62,82, p < 0,05). Conclui-se que, no modelo tradicional de avaliação, cuja prova teórica corresponde a 90% da nota final, a preparação dos alunos que freqüentaram CPs é mais eficaz, o que enaltece a memorização em detrimento de habilidades médicas. Nesse contexto, pode-se considerar o modelo 50/50, em que a prova prática corresponde a 50% da nota final, uma proposta adequada.

In Brazil there are not enough vacancies for Medical Residency (MR) and a very high competition for vacancies in certain specialties and regions. This favors the establishment of Preparatory Courses (PCs) for MR tests. Medical students have been increasingly neglecting their curricular activities for en rolling in these Preparatory Courses. For evaluating the effectiveness of these courses, a questionnaire was applied to the candidates for MR at the University Hospital of Federal University of Juiz de Fora. 74.7% from the 368 applicants agreed to participate in the study, most of which (72%) were frequenting PCs. There was no significant difference in the rate of approval among the candidates who had prepared themselves in PCs and those who did not. On the other hand, the average grade of the candidates that took PCs was 4.07 points higher (66.89 versus 62.82, p < 0.05). It is concluded that in the traditional evaluation model, whose theoretical test corresponds to 90% of the final grade, the preparation of the students who took PCs is more effective, valuing memorization above medical abilities. Thus, the 50/50 model, in which the practical test corresponds to 50% of the final grade, can be considered an adequate proposal.