Knowledge and perspective on the application of computer and Internet in medical curriculum among first-year medical students

Abstract

Background: Medicine comprises a vast base of knowledge. Computer usage and Internet accesses can serve as the best means of gaining information related to Medical journals, research and diagnosis papers, important medical documents, and reference books. Aim and Objective: The aim of the study was as follows (1) to estimate the knowledge of medical students on computer and Internet; (2) to estimate the extent and purpose of computer and Internet usage; (3) to identify factors that encouraged the students to use computer and Internet; and (4) to assess the need for incorporating computer and Internet in the medical curriculum. Materials and Methods: Around 309 1st-year medical students of SRM Medical College in the year 2014-17 took part voluntarily in a prospective, cross-sectional, and questionnaire-based study. The questionnaire collected information on their computer knowledge, Internet usage patterns, knowledge about information technology, and barriers for using it. Data were entered in Microsoft Excel and appropriate statistical tests were applied for analysis. Results: Majority of the students around 93.2% were using computer and Internet with respect to the knowledge on computers, the overall total score was found to be 58.7%, knowledge on hardware was 64%, software being 53.9%, and knowledge on Internet was found to be 58.3%, respectively. The students used computer predominantly for entertainment (82%), preparing presentation (63.5%), and word processing (43%). Only a few have used it for advanced functions such as database management (36.5%). The purpose of Internet usage among the students was 73.1% entertainment, 66% email, 65% education, 30.7% for recent advances, and 24.3% for literature. Nearly 88.1% of the students have agreed for the need of integrating computer education in medical curriculum. The reason for preferring Internet for medical information is that 44% of them have agreed that it gives information on recent trends and latest advances, 23.6% agree that it is time saving, 36.2% agree that it is easily accessible, and 5.8% agree that it is cheaper than the printed materials. Conclusion: The data obtained indicate that majority of medical students used computer and Internet, though their overall knowledge on the above was seen to be average. Furthermore, a reasonably good number of students were using it for medical education and most of them wanted to implement in the medical curriculum. This justifies the need to incorporate computer and Internet technology into the existing medical curriculum.