Introduction of an anatomy multi‐station integrated table conference (343.1)

Abstract

Assessment is the culmination for any educational activity. Anatomy assessments in medical school traditionally consist of multiple choice and cadaver practical exams. When the University of Utah School of Medicine adopted an integrated curriculum the mode of assessments also changed including the addition of Objective Structured Clinical Exams (OSCEs) as the summative form of clinical assessment. An OSCE is a one‐on‐one exam with multiple stations testing communication, physical exam, clinical knowledge, and radiographic interpretation among other skills. We asked the question, “How can we as anatomy professors create an assessment similar to the OSCE?” We implemented an anatomy multi‐station, integrated table conference into the dissection schedule. Three times throughout the Foundations of Medicine Unit medical and dental students were tested one‐on‐one regarding their knowledge of anatomy. The anatomy questions were standardized and had correlations to clinical medicine, histology, embryology and radiology. The students rotated from station to station using a combination of cadavers, skeletons, and images (either on iPads or printed and placed on the wall) to answer the questions. As a result, students were graded not only on their knowledge of anatomy but also their verbalization of this knowledge within an integrated context of medicine and clinical sciences.Grant Funding Source: Supported by the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy