Its difficult to explain to lay people (and I in all honesty do not mean to be condescending) but even in the "simplest" of cases a doctor is called upon to draw on advanced skills and concepts he may not even remember he has.
People fail out of the profession at various levels. A classmate of mine fled in the second year during her first dissection of a cadavar, never to return, some make it to residncy then quit. Certainly we should be vigilant and catch students before they become suicidal. But really, the practice of medicine requires a certain temperament. Some people are built for it and others are not.
> Would you rather have more less trained doctors, or fewer elite doctors in those circumstances?*
Unfortunately there is no middle ground. A doctor is either capable or he/she is not. We simply cant train them halfway. There are countries that have carried out the experiment you propose and attempt to train doctors to 'adequate' levels. The results are not good.
People fail out of the profession at various levels. A classmate of mine fled in the second year during her first dissection of a cadavar, never to return, some make it to residncy then quit. Certainly we should be vigilant and catch students before they become suicidal. But really, the practice of medicine requires a certain temperament. Some people are built for it and others are not.
> Would you rather have more less trained doctors, or fewer elite doctors in those circumstances?*
Unfortunately there is no middle ground. A doctor is either capable or he/she is not. We simply cant train them halfway. There are countries that have carried out the experiment you propose and attempt to train doctors to 'adequate' levels. The results are not good.