title: Medical social sciences. Their potential contributions to medical education reforms in Saudi Arabia.
abstract: This article emphasizes a holistic definition of health. It then introduces the concept of  Medical social sciences, and drawing from the literature, argues for the inevitability of social sciences in medical education, especially in the health systems of developing countries including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). This is followed by a brief history of medical education in KSA, and an examination of some important social science issues. Finally, this  article suggests how a holistic approach involving inputs from the social and behavioral sciences could be incorporated into undergraduate medical education to produce medical professionals who could better meet the community and public health needs of the country.
authors: Department of Health Services and Hospital Administration, Faculty of Economics and Administration, King Abdulaziz University, PO Box 80271, Jeddah 21589, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. hmaborie@gmail.com
authors: Hussein M
authors: HM
authors: Al-Borie
mesh_terms: D004501:Education, Medical / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D012529:Saudi Arabia; D012942:Social Sciences / Q000193:education*