Educational Exhibit Abstract No. 429 - ■ FEATURED POSTER Time for an intervention? The current state of medical student interventional radiology education

Abstract

Learning Objectives What is the current state of IR education in medical schools? What trends exist in IR education and how can these trends focus future efforts of IR student education? Background Many have evaluated medical student understanding and perceptions of IR. However, to our knowledge, there has never been a national U.S. survey that assessed the status of IR education on the medical student level. In 2011, members of the IR Medical Student Council (IRMSC), which is housed under the Student and Resident Committee of SIR, sent separate electronic surveys to medical school students and administrators across the U.S. Three reminder surveys were sent with the collection period lasting from 9/2011-2/2012. Clinical Findings/Procedure Details A total of 49 responses were obtained from medical students (n=25) and administrators (n=24) representing 44 unique institutions. Of these responders, 85% (42/49) stated they had a radiology interest group whereas only 12% (6/49) stated they had an IR interest group (IRIG). Moreover, only 24% (12/49) said there is pre-clinical (MSI-II) exposure to IR. Only 8% (2/24) of administrators claimed clinical (MSIII-IV) requirements in IR education. Additionally, 96% (24/25) of students stated that an IR website would be informative. Conclusion and/or Teaching Points There is a paucity of IR-related education at the medical student level. The discordance in the prevalence of the two interest groups and lack of required clinical exposure suggest two areas on which to focus future efforts. The IRMSC is actively forming new IRIGs at institutions around the country. Members are also developing an IR website and Facebook page to meet the demands of the 96% of students who said such a resource would be informative. In addition, with such little IR exposure in the pre-clinical setting, Council members have recruited IRs to give lectures ranging from anatomy to hosting ultrasound-guided procedure workshops. It is important to continue such collaboration in order to ensure an efficient transition between identifying ways to increase IR exposure on the medical school campus and implementing these ideas into tangible educational resources.