Effects of a focused one-day interactive session on oncology research on medical students’ interest in and understanding of oncology research.

Abstract

11037 Background: Literacy and proficiency in medical research are crucial for the development of modern-day physicians. The need to equip future doctors with sufficient research skills is particularly important in oncology research, as cancer is the second leading cause of death in Jordan and the first worldwide. With the support of the University of Jordan ASCO-OSIG, we explored the efficacy of an interactive research intervention in highlighting the foundations of cancer clinical, basic, and translational research among undergraduate medical students. Methods: We designed and implemented a one-day educational program about all types of cancer research: clinical, basic, and translational. To evaluate the impact of this ASCO-OSIG initiative, students were asked to voluntarily fill surveys before and after the event. Medical students in both their pre-clinical and clinical training were invited to attend the event. Prominent researchers and experts from multiple tertiary cancer centers in Jordan presented 50min lectures on the foundations of clinical, basic, and translational oncology research. Results: A total of 111 participants filled the pre and post surveys, of which ASCO-OSIG members comprised 28.8% of the sample. Approximately 51.4% of participants were pre-clinical students and 48.2% were in their clinical years. About half of our cohort (50.2%) have previously engaged in research projects with only 10.2% of participants have been involved in oncology research. The event was effective in promoting participants’ understanding and familiarity of the fundamentals of clinical (p-value < 0.001), translational (p-value < 0.001), and basic oncology research (p-value < 0.001). Most students were satisfied with the event; with 55% and 32.4% of students reporting being very satisfied and extremely satisfied with the event, respectively. Moreover, 83.8% of participants felt that oncology research was easier to get into after the event. About 96% of students reported that they would recommend this event to a colleague. Conclusions: We demonstrated that a focused one-day cancer research conference had improved medical students’ understanding towards oncology research. Due to its design simplicity, other global ASCO-OSIG coordinators could implement the model within their respective institutions. Future efforts should expand on the available research initiatives and include other medical schools worldwide.