Abstract
As ultrasound has gained popularity with improving technology and ease-of-use, a push has been made to integrate ultrasound into the medical school curriculum. Many institutions are reporting one- to four-year integrated ultrasound curricula to augment anatomy and pathophysiology teaching. Our goal was to integrate a thyroid ultrasound scanning session into the endocrinology block of our institution’s medical school curriculum to enhance medical student understanding of thyroid anatomy and pathophysiology. We conducted a prospective, single-center cohort (pre-experimental) study to evaluate student performance and knowledge acquisition using a pretest-posttest design. These multimodal sessions, consisting of a didactic, hands-on scanning sessions, and knowledge integration tests, covered ultrasound technique and thyroid evaluation and advanced to diagnosing an abnormal thyroid and working up a thyroid nodule. There were 26 to 27 second-year medical students per session who rotated between three stations proctored by credentialled physicians. Students participated in hands-on scanning of patients with or without thyroid pathology at each station. Out of the 209 students who participated in the ultrasound sessions, 114 (54.5%) consented to participate in the research project and completed both the pretest and posttest. Test data from the 114 students showed a mean pretest score of 57.5% ± 14.6% and the mean posttest score of 73.9% ± 17.4%. They had a 16.5% ± 19.6% (p < 0.001) increase in score between the two tests. Our study demonstrates that a multimodal thyroid ultrasound scanning session is an effective tool to augment the medical school endocrinology curriculum and to improve students’ knowledge of thyroid anatomy, pathophysiology, and diagnostic workup of thyroid nodules.
Highlights
Ultrasound has gained popularity as a relatively safe way to evaluate pathology and to aid in certain procedures [1]
Our study demonstrates that a multimodal thyroid ultrasound scanning session is an effective tool to augment the medical school endocrinology curriculum and to improve students’ knowledge of thyroid anatomy, pathophysiology, and diagnostic workup of thyroid nodules
This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of this educational tool in the medical school curriculum by assessing student knowledge pre and post-session
Summary
Ultrasound has gained popularity as a relatively safe way to evaluate pathology and to aid in certain procedures [1]. Ultrasound machines are becoming increasingly more portable and with greater image quality. These factors have made clinical ultrasound a tool used by many and a field of continued growth [2,3]. Ultrasound was performed primarily by the imaging technician in a specialized setting. Ultrasound is used at bedside as a point-of-care measure by physicians and trainees, and physicians rely on ultrasound to improve the diagnosis of multiple conditions at the bedside [1,3]. Ultrasound has promoted patient safety in certain invasive procedures, such as central line placements and centeses for fluid drainage [2]
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