The clinical skills laboratory as a learning tool for medical students and health professionals.

Clinical skill laboratories CSL have become one of the essential facilities in an undergraduate medical curriculum. A wide range of training skills were recently introduced which includes clinical examination, diagnostic and therapeutic skills as well as communication skills. Although the educational value of the CSL is very well recognized, very little is written about it in the literature. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the skills laboratory integrated in an undergraduate medical curriculum, highlight the nature of this trend, look at the advantages and disadvantages and suggest some guidelines for implementation.