Family Medicine e-Portfolio in South Africa
Dy Director, Centre for Digital Resources, Education and Medical Informatics, Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University)
BMC Medical Education (2019): National adoption of e-portfolio after successful quasi-experimental study with 28 registrars.
The Study
A 2019 quasi-experimental study in the Western Cape province of South Africa compared e-portfolio assessment with paper-based portfolios among 28 Family Medicine registrars. Published in BMC Medical Education.
Key Findings
- E-portfolio group showed significantly better feedback alignment between trainers and trainees
- Reduced reliance on hearsay-based assessment — evidence was documented and verifiable
- Adopted nationally by the South African Academy of Family Physicians
- Redesigned in 2023 to align with 22 EPAs for family medicine training
Why This Matters
This is a powerful case of national-scale adoption following a rigorous pilot. For Indian medical colleges considering ePortfolios, South Africa’s journey from a 28-registrar pilot to national implementation demonstrates a proven adoption pathway — start small, generate evidence, scale institution-wide.
References
Pon, G., et al. (2019). Family Medicine e-Portfolio in South Africa. BMC Medical Education, 19, 251. https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-019-1692-x
Dy Director, Centre for Digital Resources, Education and Medical Informatics, Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University)
Published 30 March 2026