As an example of a special training programme addressed to students of medicine in their last year, family doctors and interns, with the objective of improving professional competence regarding the certification of causes of death according to the international regulations of the World Health Organisation (WHO), see Alonso-Sardón et al. (2015).
These studies looked for activities that are performed with the aim of learning or improving professional competence.
Psychotherapists, in particular, view ongoing clinical supervision as the key method for improving professional competence [ 17], and undertake supervision long after professional requirements are met [ 18, 19].
Implementation of provider-initiated testing in primary care is a matter of balancing between risk estimation, cultural barriers and improving professional competence, for instance in knowing the patient's sexual identity.
The reflexivity cultivated through these learning arenas has the unique potential to improve professional practice, not merely by enhancing competence but also by cultivating character and conscience, which is central in making judgments that serve the common good.
The objective of this work is to improve the professional competence of medicine students and family doctors with regard to the certification of causes of death according to the international regulations of the WHO.
The free-standing MA program in Sociocultural Anthropology is designed specifically for those who wish to cultivate a deeper understanding of the discipline of anthropology and improve their particular professional competence, but who intend only to pursue the MA degree.
As physicians in general receive only minor training in sickness certification [ 14, 16], more educational efforts such as the described Norwegian method possibly could improve the physicians' professional competence in the area and the quality of related assessments.
Despite its relevance, neither transfer of medical knowledge across service levels, nor adjustments according to the specific local settings would probably be sufficient approaches to improve and develop adequate professional competence.
Clinical competence was rated as better than professional competence.
