Introduction:

Four revisions have been made to the self-assessment instrument used in the accreditation of medical education in Mexico. The update of the standards in 2018 generated reflections in medical schools, which gave relevance to the following question: do the standards for evaluating the quality of medical education in Mexico have structural congruence in the 2018 self-assessment instrument used by the Mexican Council for the Accreditation of Medical Education (COMAEM)?

Objective:

Analyze the structural congruence between the standards used to evaluate the quality of medical education in Mexico by COMAEM.

Method:

A qualitative and documentary study was carried out, from the interpretive approach based on Gadamerian hermeneutics and the Morganov-Heredia technique. 4 stages were carried out. Binary matrices and the corresponding graph of the 7 sections of the self-assessment instrument and the 74 basic accreditation standards were constructed. The study analysis categories were: institutional orientation, study plan, students, teachers, evaluation, institutional linkage, administration and resources.

Results:

The inter-section congruence analysis showed section 1 as the source section and sections 5, 6 and 7 as top sections; at this level of analysis the inter-section congruence was 100%. In the intra-section analysis, 9 (12.16%) isolated standards, 14 (18.92%) source standards, 37 intermediate standards (50%), 14 (18.92%) top standards and 183 antecedent-consequent sequences were identified. 2 complete graphs and 11 subgraphs were constructed that formed 3 connected graphs (sections 2, 5 and 7) and 2 unconnected graphs (sections 1 and 4). The intra-section congruence was 87.84%.

Conclusions:

The standards used by COMAEM are structurally consistent in the 2018 self-assessment instrument to assess the quality of medical education.