Broader treatment

In the article "Overseas growth exposes Brits to knowledge vacuum" (2 September), it was implied that I believe that lecturers at Newcastle University are being asked to prepare material beyond their expertise in preparation for delivery of the MBBS undergraduate medicine curriculum at the Newcastle Malaysia campus.

As I have not been directly involved in any planning for that curriculum, I was not in a position to comment on this.

I now realise that as part of an ongoing review at Newcastle Medical School, all teachers delivering social and public health medicine sessions have been asked to review their teaching to include wider global medical issues in the curriculum. This is independent of our commitment to delivery in Malaysia.

While our teaching in that country will remain sensitive to local issues, the award of the Newcastle MBBS means that outcomes need to be identical to those delivered to home students and must include an understanding of public health delivery in the UK as it is currently taught.

Jean Adams, Institute of Health and Society, Newcastle University.