The instruction of biostatistics in medical schools

A survey of medical schools in the United States and Canada was undertaken to learn the topics in biostatistics that are being taught to medical students and how the biostatistics instruction is organized. Results indicate that more schools are requiring course work in biostatistics than were doing so 10 years ago and that instruction is integrated within courses in epidemiology or public health/community medicine at half of the schools. Although some basic concepts are taught at 90% of the responding schools, there is wide variation in the topics being covered and in the number of hours devoted to the instruction. The results of the survey are followed by descriptions of the biostatistics curriculum at three medical schools.