Integral Part Of Medical Curriculum Research Articles

Assessment of oral manifestations of systemic health related knowledge of medical students pursuing internship programme at a tertiary health care centre

AimClinicians across the entire medical profession are responsible for detection, prevention and imparting importance of oral health to the patients. However, many studies conducted so far show lack of knowledge of medical students regarding dental conditions. The present observational study was undertaken to evaluate the knowledge of oral manifestations of systemic diseases amongst medical students undergoing Internship program at a tertiary centre. Materials & methodA self-structured Questionnaire comprising of 20 questions was used as a survey tool to assess the understanding of 100 medical students undergoing internship program. They were explained about the purpose of the study. The questionnaire consisted of an objective part Yes/No (7 questions) and subjective part designed on likert scale(13 questions). There were questions on their view on current curriculum for dentistry in medical undergraduate training and possible enhancement in teaching modalities. The subjective part had five options to choose from, Strongly agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree And Strongly Disagree. Statistical analysisThe responses of objective questions was recorded and percentage calculated for both options. The total score was obtained for each participant based on their reponses to the subjective questions based on the Likert scale. Student t-test was applied to calculate means between male and female students. ResultsFor all objective questions, percentage was calculated for affirmative and negative responses. The responses were calculated on scale5-1 for the subjective questions. Reverse scoring was done for questions 10,11,12 i. e scale 1–5. The maximum achievable score in this category was 65 which was further divided into three category as Excellent score range 55–65, Good score range 45–54, Unsatisfactory score range 35–44. The number of students in excellent category were 11, Good 66, unsatisfactory 23. The average score obtained was 48.175. The mean scores for males was 48.0161 and for females it was 48.142. The scores were slightly better for females but the difference was statistically insignificant as (p-value = 0.455056). ConclusionThe present study showed good level of Knowledge on oral manifestations of systemic diseases among medical students as compared to other studies which forms an integral part of medical curriculum. The students responses on enhancing dental curriculum and teaching aids for improved education tools can help the faculty provide a better teaching learning experience.

Ensuring training of medical students in bioethics competencies as an integral part of medical curriculum

Ethics has been considered an integral and indispensable part of the health-care profession for multiple decades. The term “bioethics” generally refers to the study of ethical issues arising because of the development made in the field of medicine, biology, and technology, which might become a cause of concern for humans or detrimentally affects the association between human and their environment. In order to streamline the training process of medical students in bioethics, there is an indispensable need to define the competencies that need to be covered during the training period. We must understand that teaching bioethics is way more than covers a theoretical topic, rather it requires exposure of medical students to a number of practical and clinically relevant scenarios. In conclusion, training medical students in bioethics have to be acknowledged as an important need, as it will eventually determine the safety and well-being of the current and future generations of people. It is high time that specific steps are taken to define specific bioethics competencies and integrate them with the existing medical curriculum to benefit both medical students and the general population.

Assessment of Student’s Knowledge, Attitude and Perceptions about Autopsy

Background: The clinical autopsy is a common term used to help in the identification of person’s clinical conditions and causes of deaths, however, the autopsy plays a vital role in the justice and jurisprudence. Objective: To determine the knowledge, beliefs and understanding of medical students regarding the autopsy Study Design: Descriptive, cross-sectional study Place and Duration of Study: Peoples University of Medical & Health Sciences for Women (PUMHSW) Nawabshah (SBA) Sindh Pakistan from 1st March 2021 to 31st August 2021. Methodology: Four hundred and twenty eight female students of 3rd year and 4th year were enrolled. The students were recruited based on random sampling method. Results: There were 221 students between 23 to 24 years followed by 207 students between 20 to 22 years. One hundred and sixty five were attended 3 autopsies. Autopsy is necessary for all unnatural death and the responses were 327 yes and 101 were no. Education of autopsy is mandatory for the career and the responses were 146 yes and 282 were no understanding, videos are helpful for autopsies and the responses were 178 yes and 250 were no. Conclusion: The autopsies and experiences regarding the autopsies was integral part of medical curriculum. The studies of autopsies are helpful to understand the human anatomy and reasons of deaths. The students’ perceptions supported the medical autopsies as important part of curriculum and teaching particular anatomy of human subjects. Key words: Knowledge, Attitude, Perceptions, Autopsy

Role of basic sciences in making of a clinician: Perspectives of medical students from North India.

BACKGROUND:Advances in scientific research necessitates updating of the curriculum and the Medical Council of India now Board of Governors have proposed a new competency-based undergraduate curriculum for the Indian Medical Graduate. The authors wanted the views of medical students about basic sciences teaching in the form of feedback, their perceptions and attitudes toward the basic sciences and their opinions about the relevance of these subjects, and finally any ideas about improvement in teaching of basic sciences.MATERIALS AND METHODS:The present cross-sectional study was conducted in two medical colleges of Northern India and 250 medical students from each medical school were the study participants. Students of the 1st year were not included, but interns were included. A pretested questionnaire having twenty questions with answers in the form of “yes” and “no” was used. Chi-square was the test of significance.RESULTS:Almost all the participants considered the basic sciences as an integral part of medical curriculum and a higher number of Government Medical College respondents opined that their knowledge made it easier to understand clinical subjects (P < 0.05). However, higher proportion of ASCOMS (Acharya Shri Chandra College Medical Sciences) of respondents emphasized that the focus should be on clinical subjects and that current student–teacher ratio be increased (P < 0.05). Majority of the respondents labeled Anatomy having the immense syllabus, while Physiology was designated as more relevant and having a better recall during clinical discourse (P > 0.05).CONCLUSION:Basic sciences lay strong foundation for subsequent clinical learning. Medical education is best taught with hybrid use of lectures, tutorial, group discussions, audio-visual aids, and integrated teaching. The new proposed competency-based curriculum and the Attitudes, Ethics and Communication Module are likely to improve the overall medical education and health-care scenario.

The impact of evidence based journal club on decision making capacity: a pilot study

Introduction: Journal clubs (JC) are an integral part of medical curriculum. Evidence based journal clubs (EBJC) are now being preferred by some over traditional JCs claiming that EBJC answers questions regarding validity, reliability and applicability specifically. However, there is lack of studies addressing effect of EBJC on participants' understanding of results and critical appraisal capability. Methodology: This was a pilot study. To test effect of EBJC on understanding of the specific topic and improvement in decision making ability, pre and post tests were conducted before and after each assessed EBJC presentation. Results: Total 36 residents were included. 53% could not make up their mind about the acceptability of the results in the pretest. However, almost all could make a specific decision regarding reliability of results and applicability of the authors' conclusion at the end of the assessed EBJC presentation. Conclusion: We concluded that exposure to EBJC resulted in significant improvement in the participants' understanding of the article and specific decision making capacity.

Introduction of a Research component in the undergraduate medical curriculum – Review of a trend

The question of whether a research component should be an integral part of medical curriculum has been debated in the past and is still controversial. Patient care is the most important aspect of a medical graduate but teaching, administration and research are also essential aspects. The implementation of a research component is more important at a student level as it helps to develop a judicious insight in their academic and clinical practice, which every medical person should possess.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/nje.v2i3.6901Nepal Journal of Epidemiology 2012;2(3):200-4

Student Selected Components (SSCs): AMEE Guide No 46

Student Selected Components (SSCs) are one of the more innovative recent developments in medical education. Initially established in the UK in the 1990s in response to the General Medical Council's recommendations in Tomorrow's Doctors (1993), they provide students with a significant element of choice and depth of study in the curriculum. SSCs have become an integral part of medical curricula throughout the UK, and to a limited extent the rest of the world. In most cases they contribute to the delivery of learning outcomes broadly encompassing personal, professional and research skills, whilst creating opportunities for students to explore future career options. This AMEE Guide is written for developers of new medical curricula, where SSC-like initiatives offering choice and depth of study, in conjunction with core learning, are being considered. Its aim is to provide insight into the structure of an SSC programme and its various important component parts. It is also relevant for those already involved in SSC development by offering insight into effectively managing, assessing and improving existing programmes, to deliver effective, coherent and core-integrated teaching valued by students and faculty alike.

Evidence-based Medicine in Clinical Curriculum

The teaching of evidence-based medicine (EBM) has now been incorporated as an integral part of medical curriculum at the Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital but there is little research into the effectiveness of the course. The purpose of this report is to evaluate the EBM skills of medical students and competency of the faculty member. The EBM course was created by the EBM Working Group at the Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital for 3rd- to 6th-year medical students. The principles of EBM, clinical epidemiology and biostatistics were gradually instilled during the 4 years of medical school. Information technology infrastructure was also provided to facilitate critical appraisal skills. At the end of the Community Medicine clerkship, students anonymously evaluated aspects of the course regarding their EBM skills and faculty member competency with Likert scale questions. Medical students generally gave high evaluations to all aspects of the EBM course taught in the Community Medicine Department. For each of the evaluation questions, the means were higher for faculty member competency. The teaching of EBM course at the Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital is useful for medical students to enhance their critical thinking skills, and they seem to value the sessions positively.