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There tends to be an attitude within the profession that doctors are inherently “good,” that they are either altruistic or, with gentle prodding, can become altruistic. A more realistic outlook, however, might be that people enter various professions for various reasons and with varying levels of competence, and doctors are no different.

Wikipedia editing will force students to think clearly and avoid jargon, he said. “We do a great job in helping them talk to doctors, but we don’t do as good a job in helping them speak to the public,” he added.

These articles are submitted to a group from Translators Without Borders that produces medical articles for Wikipedias in languages spoken in countries that often lack high-quality medical information.

He said he planned to see the students for two days at the start to plot the writing and editing requirements, then track their work on Wikipedia. While some might fear that his students would cut corners, Dr. Azzam said: “I am working with medical students — professionals in training — who are highly motivated. I’m not worried about them slacking.”