Vocational analysis of health care professions as a basis for innovative curricular planning. An analysis and prognosis of the development of the professional competencies of midwives - cornerstones of innovative curricula on tertiary education

This article describes current and future tendencies in the development of curriculum planning for health care professions in Germany, using the example of midwifery education. In particular, it discusses 'output-based control' of curriculum planning giving consideration to issues related to German education, health policies and professional educational theories with a view to the general international development. The results of this analysis constitute the starting point for the conceptual planning of a dissertation at the medical faculty of the Berlin Charite with the goal of developing a competency model for the curriculum planning of midwifery education, thus creating a modern curriculum as a basis for a fundamental reform of German midwifery education. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.