Perception Of Undergraduate Medical Students Research Articles

Crossword Puzzles- An Interesting Teaching Tool to Facilitate Teaching Learning Process in Undergraduate Students of Biochemistry

Introduction: Traditional medical teaching emphasis more on didactic lectures where participation of students is minimum with lowest retention rate and it promotes the learning at the base of cognitive level. Teaching through crossword puzzles enhances active participation of students, evokes student’s interest, motivates them and enhance their critical thinking. Aim: To compare the effectiveness of crossword puzzle and traditional teaching method based on student’s performance and to evaluate perception of undergraduate medical students and faculties about crossword puzzle as a teaching learning method. Materials and Methods: The present study was a cross-sectional study which was conducted in the Department of Biochemistry, Gujarat Adani Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhuj, Gujarat, India, among the first year MBBS students. Total 150 participants were selected. Suitable two topics from the syllabus were chosen. Crossword puzzle prepared by online tools was circulated to the students during lecture of biochemistry. Performance of students were assessed by 10 pre-validated Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) based test on knows (K) and knows how (KH) levels for both teaching learning methods viz traditional method and crossword puzzle method. Student’s and teacher’s perception were also recorded using pre-validated questionnaire based on 5 point likert scale. Data was compiled and analysed in MS Excel. To test the significance difference between the averages scored by students, independent t-test was used at significant level p<0.05. Results: Average percentage score of students of crossword puzzle group was 97.1% in Diabetes Mellitus (DM) topic and 96.95% in Gout topic; which were significantly more than the average percentage scored by students of traditional method group (p<0.01). More than 80% students felt that crossword puzzles help in better understanding of the topics as well as in remembering the newer terminology. All the students and 79% teachers have suggested more use of crossword puzzles in teaching. Conclusion: Crossword puzzles improve learning through recreation and it breaks the monotony of traditional lectures. Crossword puzzle based teaching improves the student’s performance as compared to the traditional teaching.

Cadaveric dissection- An integral part of first year MBBS anatomy teaching (students’ perspective)

Introduction: Cadaveric dissection has been the integral part of the first year anatomy teaching since long back. With advancing technologies in the medical field, many teaching aids have been provided to replace the dissection. Objective: To investigate and understand the perceptions of undergraduate medical students towards the cadaveric dissection and its psychological and emotional impacts. Material and Methods: Two sets of questionnaires were prepared. These questionnaires were circulated through 283 medical students and their responses were recorded. Observations and Results: It was observed in the study that 97.2% students were of opinion that cadaveric dissection is an integral part of first year anatomy teaching while 91.2% student believed that cadaveric dissection is preferable to other practical anatomy teaching aids. Conclusion: It concludes that cadaveric dissection is an important part of medical curriculum. Cadaveric dissection is also the best method for learning of anatomy. Though prosected specimens, plastic models, plastinated specimens etc. will be helpful in learning of anatomy, cadaveric dissection should be the basic part of anatomy learning. Keywords: Dissection, Cadaver, First year MBBS

Teaching and learning of ethics in Ophthalmology: The perceptions of undergraduate medical students

Purpose of Study: This study was aimed to uncover the perceptions of undergraduate students specifically pertaining to their experiences of ethics teaching and their opinions of the value of such teaching. Methodology: We used a mixed methods design involving 148 students through a sequential exploratory strategy. Three ethics sessions revolved around the teaching of ethics in Ophthalmology after which the participants were interviewed using open-ended questions. The data was analysed by coding, categorisation and the subsequent derivation of themes. The quantitative analysis was done through a questionnaire survey to further explore the students’ preference on teaching methodologies. Results: Majority students perceive the objective of ethics teaching is to help them to become a better doctor, to better equip them to deal with ethical dilemmas in the future, to improve their social skills, and to help them to avoid legal complications. The preferred formats of learning ethics as expressed by participants was scenario based discussion (29%), debate (25%), self-directed learning (24%) & lectures (22%). Conclusion: The common theme emerged from the qualitative analysis was that students wanted to learn ethics in order to help to make them better doctors. Scenario based discussion was the indicated preferred teaching method expressed by students. Keyword: Ethics, Teaching, Students, Perception.

Perception of Medical Students and Staff towards Community Medicine Educational Process in Traditional and Integrated Medical Schools

ABSTRACT Background: Community medicine teaching has a vital role in graduation of community oriented primary health care physicians, who can identify and solve health problems in their community.However, the majority of undergraduate medical students perceived it as irrelevant to their role as physicians and not prefer it as a future career. Integration in medical curricula makes the learning and teaching to occur in a holistic way that reflects the real world, so it may be perceived better by students and staff members. Objectives: To investigate the perception of undergraduate medical students towards community medicine teaching process and their future career preference, to identify the perception of teaching staff about the community medicine educational process in traditional and integrated medical schools. Participants and Methods: a cross sectional study, conducted on 600 randomly chosen undergraduate students (300 from each system), and 110 community medicine teaching staff members at some faculties of medicine in Egypt (68 from traditional system and 42 from integrated system). Data were collected by self-administered pre-tested questionnaires using Likert-scale. Results: The mean age of participant students was 21.8 year±0.8, while the mean age of participant staff members was >40 years, and the majorities of both were females. The median of total scores was low in both groups, while it was significantly higher among the participants from integrated versus traditional schools (students score was 58.5 versus 51) and (staff score was 79.5 versus 74) respectively. Only 12% among studied students preferred community medicine as a future career, 53.5% among them were highly satisfied by community medicine course. Conclusions: Perceptions regarding the community medicine educational process was better among the integrated system participants than traditional ones. The majorities of students in both systems did not prefer community medicine as a future career.

Perspectives of medical students on attributes of bedside teaching

Background: Bedside teaching forms an integral part of medical education which is declining recently. The aim of this study is to evaluate the perception of undergraduate medical students about the attributes of bedside teaching.Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out among the undergraduate medical students of Dr. Sirajul Islam Medical College, Dhaka, from September to November 2016. One hundred and forty medical students were included in this study. Ethical clearance had taken and a pre-designed and pre-tested questionnaire comprising of closed ended questions was used.Results: Majority of the study group, 64.3% absolutely agree that bedside teaching is a useful method for learning medical skills and 28.6% just agree. Regarding learning correct physical examination, mostly 41.4% absolutely agree that it is helpful and 37.1% only agree. It helps in rapid improvement of medical skills within limited time as absolutely agreed and just agreed by 48.6% and 45.7%, respectively. Half (50%) absolutely agree, 40% only agree that problem-based learning is possible, while evidence-based medicine can also be learned as 51.4% participants absolutely agree than 38.6% only agree. Majority 42.9% agree and 34.3% absolutely agree that allotted time is inadequate. More than half 54.3% and 40% absolutely agree and just agree, respectively, that maximum medical knowledge can be achieved by means of bedside teaching.Conclusions: Positive opinion about bedside teaching exists among the future doctors. But unfortunately they are deprived due to time limitation. The barrier must be removed to restore this imperative element of medical education.

Study of the perceptions of the educational environment among undergraduate medical students of Taylor's University.

This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. A conducive educational environment is vital to successful learning. Perception of students about their particular educational environment may vary depending on their educational background, gender, level of study, and many other factors. Awareness and understanding of the students' perception of educational environment are a key to improve our teaching and learning environment. The aim of the study was to determine the perception of undergraduate medical students of Taylor's University, Malaysia on their educational environment. A cross sectional cohort study was conducted among preclinical and clinical students simultaneously at Taylor's University, School of Medicine in July 2019. Overall total scores of perceptions (136.55 ± 19.6) and those for the subscales were very satisfactory and similar to those of other local universities as well as international universities. There was a significant difference between preclinical and clinical students in two domains; Perception of Course Organizers and Academic Self-Perception, with higher scores among clinical students in all. There was a significant difference between students with Grade 'B' and those with Grade 'C' in the mean total score and Perceptions of Atmosphere. These results, in spite of being satisfactory, urge us to seek methods of and opportunities for further enhancement of the students' education environment.

Perceptions of undergraduate medical students regarding the Educational Environment: A Baseline study.

Background: Perception regarding the educational environment in an institute is related to various factors like motivation, satisfaction, and effective learning of medical students.
 Objective: To determine undergraduate medical students’ perceptions of 1st – final year class, regarding the educational environment in their institute.
 Methodology: Descriptive cross-sectional study conducted at a private Medical and Dental College in Lahore; during the time period of July 19-Oct 19. A sample of 375 was taken, equally divided among all five classes and across gender & Purposive sampling was applied. The data collection instrument was DREEM Questionnaire. Socio-demographic and variables of DREEM were included in the study. Data was analyzed on SPSS 20 planned as 1) Descriptive statistics, mean and standard deviation for all categories, frequency trends will be noted for total and subunit scores of DREEM 2) Independent sample t-test will be applied to identify gender and residential status-related difference in all subcategories and total score of DREEM 3) ANOVA will be applied to identify variation among all five classes.
 Results: 163 male and 203 female students participated. DREEM total mean score was 118.44±19.41, and 299(81.7%) had responded to it to be more positive than negative. Independent sample t-test found a significant P-value <0.05 with gender & residential status for total as well as subunit domains of DREEM. One-way ANOVA again showed significant P-values <0.05 for total as well as subunit domains of DREEM.
 Conclusion: Assessment of the educational environment should be conducted on regular basis as per policy in order to have a successful environment. This will in turn be beneficial for the students as well as the institution in a timely manner; and will definitely help in improving the teaching and learning environment in the institution by taking the necessary actions in weaker areas.
 Keywords: Educational environment, DREEM, undergraduate, medical student

Perception of Undergraduate Medical Students Regarding Mentorship in Medical Education

Introduction: Although there is a definite need of mentorship in medical education, there is lack of well organised mentorship program in medical institutions in our country. It is essential to identify the perception of medical undergraduates regarding mentorship. Aim: To assess the student’s perception regarding mentoring at different stages of their studies. Materials and Methods: A Questionnaire based observational study was carried out on second year MBBS regular batch students. Enrollment of the students for study was purely on voluntary basis after taking informed consent. All the study participants were given 30 minutes for filling of questionnaire which was predesigned, structured and validated. The collected data were entered in Microsoft excel and analysed accordingly. Results: A total of 203 students participated in the study. Out of these, 173 (85.2%) students felt that mentorship is guiding the students. About 81 students (39.9%) strongly agreed that mentorship is a relationship rather than set of activities. About 198 students (98%) felt that there is a definite need of mentorship in medical education. About 151 students (74.4%) felt that contact session with mentor should be done as and when required but definitely more before exam. About 181 students (89.6%) felt comfortable if mentor had expectations from them. Conclusion: Almost all students perceived that there is definite need of mentorship in medical education with subject expertise; availability and nature of mentor were given priority in choosing mentor. Perception regarding frequency and place of meeting for mentorship varied widely among students. Through this study we came to know about the perception of medical undergraduates which will be helpful to identify their expectations from the mentor.

A study evaluating effectual of knowledge, attitude and perception of undergraduate medical students towards medico-legal autopsy

Introduction: Ideally, the medico-legal autopsies have to be conducted by doctors specialized in the branch of Forensic Medicine. However, there is limited availability of forensic medicine specialists in India as compared to the number required. The bulk of the medico-legal autopsies are usually carried out by graduate doctors and not by forensic medicine specialists. This study was contemplated to know the attitude of the undergraduate medical students, about the medico-legal autopsy and to ascertain the change in their perception and attitude for autopsy, if any, after passing the Forensic Medicine subject as per their medical curriculum. Materials and Methods: Study was carried out on first, second and third-year undergraduate medical students. Questionnaires to be answered were administered to the participating medical students in physical form. SPSS statistical software was used for comparing the mean among three groups using ANOVA test. Chi-square and Fischer exact test was also used. Results: 249 undergraduate medical students took part in the study. Significant increase in knowledge for medico-legal autopsy was observed among 3rd-year medical students. On comparing mean among all the three groups regarding the knowledge, perception, experience and change in attitude for medico-legal autopsy, it was found to be statistically highly significant (p-value Conclusion: The undergraduate medical students should be encouraged to observe more autopsies during their study course. Problem-based learning during practical training of autopsy must be incorporated, as a part of the medical curriculum and instead of elective, compulsory rotatory internship training should be there for Forensic Medicine. Keywords: Autopsy, Postmortem examination, Students, Attitude.

IMPACT OF EARLY INTRODUCTION OF CLINICAL SKILLS TO MEDICAL UNDERGRADUATES IN PBL CURRICULUM

OBJECTIVE: To find out the viewpoint and perception of undergraduate medical students of Sulaiman AlRajhi Medical School (SAMS), Saudi Arabia regarding introduction of clinical training component in the early medical years (years 1, 2 and 3) on students' learning of clinical skills (CS) in a new problem-based learning (PBL) medical curriculum. METHODS: The study was conducted at SAMS, Saudi Arabia between December 2017 and October 2018. After Informed and written consent, students from 3rd, 4th, and 5th year were divided in to three respective Focus groups (n=8-10/group). A questionnaire was developed to conduct interview with the focus groups that was conducted by two faculty members of SAMS who were not involved in CS training.RESULTS: More than 90% students agreed or strongly agreed that it was good to introduce CS in the early years of the curriculum. They reacted that the course enhanced their learning interest and made them feel like doctors. Non-availability of expert supervisors, lack of standardization and less number of sessions were the main limitations in early introduction of skills in the medial curriculum. Students made constructive suggestions on how the course could be improved during the interactive focus group interviews to minimize the negative effects. CONCLUSION: Undergraduate medical students perceive that the introduction of CS in early years is useful and facilitates bedside teaching of important CS during clinical years in PBL curriculum. Standardization of curriculum, availability of simulated patients and CS instructor, and preparation of students before coming to sessions remain the major limitations.

Perceptions of undergraduate medical students about peer assisted learning.

To assess the perceptions of undergraduate medical students about peer assisted learning (PAL). Study Design: Cross sectional study. Setting: Peshawar Medical College. Period: From March 2016 to August 2016. Materials and Methods: A total of 84 students from second year MBBS were included to record the perceptions about peer assisted learning. A total of six topics of urogenital module were selected for PAL session. A validated questionnaire having 17 close ended questions was used to evaluate PAL on Likert-scale. The participants consented and evaluated the questionnaire, from which data was gathered and analyzed to reveal the degree of satisfaction by the PAL. Results: There were equal number of males and females (40 each). About 65—75% agreed that PAL was more informative than classical lecture system; topic discussed was clearer and found answers to their questions. 60—70% liked to incorporate peer assisted learning in their modules, showed satisfaction to the contents covered, felt easy to communicate with peer tutor and were of the view that peer tutors performed well in their teacher’s role. Among peer tutors, 70—80% agreed that the endeavor improved their confidence in teaching, presentation and communication skills. Over 62% agreed that teaching at undergraduate level was a beneficial experience. Conclusion: The participants’ found the peer assisted learning teaching method as useful. Therefore, this strategy may be introduced in the college.

Perceptions of undergraduate medical students about teaching-learning methods adopted by faculty members in community medicine

Background: Effective learning is closely associated with effective teaching. Achieving effective learning requires a student cantered and outcome-focused approach.4 Various interactive techniques like Problem Based Learning (PBL), facilitated group discussion, E-learning, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS) etc., are being implemented in TL sessions in medical schools. These methods are found to be effective to foster better learning among medical students. The present study was an attempt to understand the perceptions of undergraduate medical students, posted at Government Medical College and Hospital, Mehabubnagar, Telangana about different teaching methodologiesMethods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 56 MBBS students of 4th semester. A pre-tested, self-administered, structured questionnaire was devised which consisted of ten questions with three to four options each. Study participants were asked to fill up the questionnaire under strict supervision and they were allotted 15 minutes to complete the same. Entire data was entered into Microsoft Office Excel Sheet and analysed.Results: Out of 56, 32 (57.14%) female students and 24 (42.85%) male students voluntarily participated in the study. large number of participants i.e., 66.07% thought that FGD is the best method of teaching. Most of participants i.e. 96.42% had favourable attitudes towards PPT as they felt that it improves their learning.Conclusions: Maximum number of undergraduate medical students knew about E learning. Facilitated Group Discussion (FGD) was the most preferred teaching learning methodology by students. The majority of them had positive perceptions towards the use of Power Point Presentation (PPT) as a powerful teaching tool in medical education.

The undergraduate medical students’ perception of student-doctor approach training for diabetic retinopathy screening

Introduction: To explore the perception of Undergraduate medical students on ‘STUDENT-DOCTOR’ approach of learning at a community clinic during diabetic retinopathy screening. Materials and Methods: This was a sequential explanatory mixed method design to explore the benefits as perceived by 104 fourth year medical undergraduates who were enrolled for the study at the community clinic where they were trained through student-doctor approach. The quantitative analysis was done through survey questions on a five Likert scale. Open ended semi structured interview questions were used to further explore student’s perception on this new method of learning. Results: The average score to the statements such as improvement in communication skill & clinical examination skills were 4.27 & 4.41 respectively. All participants strongly agreed that this approach was helpful for their future clinical practice. During qualitative analysis it was found that the majority of students expressed that the learning was meaningful for its long-term effect and its implication on general practice. Most of the participants expressed that the techniques helped them in understanding of the complex mix of physical, emotional, and social elements in holistic and personalized patient care. One respondent mentioned “Hands on experience helped me retain better & I learnt from my mistake…”. Another one described “the exposure gave an idea of real life practice which will do in future to screen diabetic retinopathy…”. Lot of students felt that such method of learning was fun and interactive as it was not just sitting in a classroom or behind a desk studying a disease and its pathophysiology but getting the feel of real life experiences. The preceptors felt the method satisfying as they could do work place assessment on the learners. Conclusions: Community based education through hands on training is effective as it makes the learning authentic by looking into implication at real lif

AUTOPSY: Knowledge and Perception of undergraduate medical students in current teaching system

Objective: To evaluate their acquaintance about autopsy, appropriate way of teaching and to appraise their views for the procedure of autopsy and recognition of Forensic as profession.
 Methodology: A cross sectional questionnaire-based study was done in 2015 to 2016, in a public university running modular system. Data were collected by convenient method, from students of 3rd year and ahead. More than 250 forms were distributed and only 193 completed and analyzed by SPSS 17.
 Results: Out of 193 students, 165 students claimed to recognize the “autopsy” and 28 not understand the procedure. Only 20 students observed more than 4 autopsies. Out of 193, 179 believed that Forensic education should not be scrapped from the medical syllabi. For teaching methodology 123 preferred a live autopsy and 64 students appreciated watching videos and only 6 favoured books. About 167 students stated autopsy as mandatory in all unsuspected deaths, and 172 agreed for usefulness in medical education but 111 found it disrespectful to the dead body. Around 166 students consider forensic not a prospective profession and 93 suggested its limited scope in Pakistan.
 Conclusion: Students were aware of the value and necessity of autopsy as a medicolegal procedure. Adequate time must be fixed for viewing autopsy procedures to insure their complete competency. There is need for continuing efforts to improve the teaching of autopsy within a modular system.
 Keywords: Autopsy, Undergraduate Medical Education, Forensic Medicine, Forensic Education

Medical Students' Perceptions of their Educational Environment at a Saudi University.

Background:Students’ perception of their educational environment has a significant impact on their behavior and academic progress.Aim:The aim of the study is to assess the perceptions of undergraduate medical students regarding their educational environment at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Saudi Arabia.Subjects and Methods:This cross-sectional study utilized the Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) inventory to collect data from 5th-year medical students at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University during the academic year 2010–2011 (score range: 0–200). The mean scores for each individual item and for the following five contributing DREEM domains were calculated: Perception of learning, perception of teaching, academic self-perception, perception of atmosphere and social self-perception.Results:The questionnaire was distributed to 121 students, all of whom completed the questionnaire. Of these, 65.3% were male and 34.7% were female. The mean total score was 126.4 (63%), indicating that the educational environment is satisfactory. The two lowest scoring contributory domains were academic self-perception (17.4/28; 60%) and perception of learning (29.3/48; 61%). No areas of excellence were identified (i.e., mean scores of >3.5); however, four main problematic areas were identified (mean scores of ≤2.0): Overemphasis of factual learning (1.66), difficulty with authoritarianism of teachers (1.55), students unable to memorize everything (1.82) and boredom in course (1.81).Conclusion:This study found that the overall educational environment at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University is satisfactory, with further scope of improvement. The author recommends implementation of remedial measures such as modifications in curriculum and using innovative teaching strategies to overcome problematic areas and further improve the overall educational environment.

The undergraduate medical student's perception of professional mentorship: Results from a developing nation's medical school.

INTRODUCTION:There are no documented formal mentoring programs for medical students in Nigeria. This study aims to determine the perception of undergraduate medical students at the University of Jos on professional mentorship, with a view to informing University authorities on creating and developing a mentoring program.MATERIALS AND METHODS:A cross-sectional study conducted in December 2017 in which self-administered questionnaires were distributed among the sixth-year medical students in a University in North-Central Nigeria, eliciting information regarding biodemographic data, knowledge of and experiences with mentoring, desired benefits of mentoring, and the willingness to participate in a mentoring relationship. Data collected was analyzed with EPI Info statistical software® version 7.2.1 (EPI Info, Center for Disease Control, Atlanta, Georgia, 2017).RESULTS:In a class of 166, the response rate was 83.5%. Mean age = 27.4 years; standard deviation = ±2.6 with a male: female ratio of 1.9:1. Moderate knowledge of mentoring was reported by 47 (44.3%). Attitude toward mentoring was very positive in 23.6%. One hundred and four (98.1%) students agreed mentoring are effective in developing potential. Nearly 95.3% agreed a mentorship program would benefit medical students with 70.8% expressing high willingness to participate. A weak positive statistical correlation between the age of students and those who expressed willingness to participate was recorded (r = 0.04; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.6–1.16; and P = 0.05).CONCLUSION:Sixth-year medical students of the University of Jos have a moderate knowledge of and a good attitude toward mentorship. The implementation of a formal mentoring program for medical students at the University of Jos is strongly recommended.

Attitude and perception of undergraduate medical students toward the problem-based learning in Chitwan Medical College, Nepal.

BackgroundProblem-based learning (PBL) was introduced into Basic Medical Sciences early in the 1980s at Tribhuvan University (TU), Nepal, followed by other universities where didactic lecture method was still followed as the main teaching strategy. Despite gaining its popularity worldwide as integrated teaching learning method, PBL is not given importance in Nepal. This study aimed to assess the attitude and perceptions of undergraduate medical students regarding learning outcomes of PBL and to know their views about role and qualities of effective tutors for its successful implementation.MethodsThis descriptive study was based on a self-administered questionnaire. The first part of the questionnaire measured students’ perception and attitude toward benefits of PBL and the second part measured students’ perception about role of PBL tutor. Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) first year (2014/2015 academic year) students at Chitwan Medical College, TU, were asked to express their opinions about the importance of learning outcomes by rating each statement on a five-point Likert scale and the responses were combined into three categorical variables: “agree” (strongly agree plus agree), “neutral”, and “disagree” (strongly disagree plus disagree). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21.0.ResultsApproximately 85.5% participants agreed that PBL is an interesting method of teaching learning. Most of them (86.7%) accepted that PBL is an interactive and a mutual learning method and improves self-directed learning (83.2%). Although 78% had recommended it better than lecture, many (54.2%) pointed it out as a time-consuming method. The participants were also highly rated (80.5%) to the statement - the tutor’s role in enhancing the constructive active learning and maintaining good intra-personal behavior.ConclusionStudent’s attitude toward PBL was positive. They highly appreciated the roles of a tutor as facilitators and motivators for proper activities in PBL session. PBL sessions were considered effective in improving students professional knowledge and refining problem-solving and self-directed learning skills along with enriching teamwork experience.

Student Perception and Preference in Learning of Sensorimotor tracts in Neuroanatomy: Evidence for gender differences

Neuroanatomy learning and teaching continue to be a challenge in any curricula. One reason is that relations among different structures is difficult to visualize. Spatial abilities are useful in learning neuroanatomy, but students' skills differ widely in any given medical class, specially between genders. Thus, building and manipulating physical models has shown to be useful for learning anatomy, as it incorporates basic sensorimotor skills in the learning process. This study examines the spatial abilities and perceptions of undergraduate medical students toward learning sensorimotor tracts. It also proposes that following a self‐guided virtual module, in addition to “threading” the tracts over a physical model of spinal cord and brainstem, which allows visualization of the trajectories, would improve the consolidation of the information, enhance the learning experience of the topic, and contribute to student autonomy.In a cohort of 70 undergraduate medical students, the perception of difficulties and learning strategies and actual spatial proficiency were measured using a questionnaire and a standardized Mental Rotation Test (MRT) in 2017‐II. A virtual module consisting of interactive videos, equipped with formative quizzes and a training module to practice spinal cord segment identification were developed in Spanish. Construction of the scaffold model for tract threading, instruction video for assembly of the model and student outcomes will be tested in 2018‐I following a randomized experimental crossover design.Results of the pilot study showed that the strategies used by students range widely from plain repetition to coloring. Analysis of the answers by gender show a difference in the strategies prioritized. While female students prefer drawing the tracts in colors significantly more than men, male students prefer mental visualization of the tracts and dislike drawing with colors pencils. Also, there is a wide range of spatial abilities in the class, according to the MRT. Just as reported in the literature for the rest of the world, the results of women are significant lower than in men (P<0.05).Preliminary evidence shows that the perceptions toward the difficulty of content, self‐efficacy and motivation differ between male and female students. Also, they utilize different strategies to study the topic. Further study would allow to develop and test tools, such as a 3D model of the spinal cord and brainstem to “thread” the tracts, that would benefit students with different learning styles.Support or Funding InformationVicerrectoría Académica, Universidad de los Andes.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Gender-based perception of undergraduate medical students at King Abdulaziz University towards use of simulation-based learning in pediatrics

Background: Use of simulation in pediatric clinical teaching has been adopted in many postgraduate curricula while there is limited data on its impact on medical student satisfaction in the undergraduate pediatric clerkship. Objectives: this study aimed to assess the perception of undergraduate medical students at King Abdulaziz University (KAU) towards simulation-based learning in pediatrics clerkship and if the gender affects their perception. Subjects and methods: A comparative cross sectional study was conducted during the academic year 2017/2018 at the clinical skills and simulation center (CSSC), KAU Hospital using a self-administered questionnaire distributed to 390 fifth year medical students enrolled in the pediatric rotation. Student were requested to assess a simulation session on managing a child with status epileptics. The data was analyzed using the Statistical Package of Social Science (SPSS) Version 16. Results: Although most of the students attended the simulation-based session were satisfied with the orientation about the simulation environment, the female students were significantly (p=0.005), more satisfied than the males. On the other hand, both male and females were satisfied with the simulation environment, technology and the clarity of session objectives with no significant difference between them. The simulation session was significantly (P=0.006) more helpful to female students in applying the knowledge and skill they need for clinical practice more than the male students. Conclusion: Face validity of simulation-based learning in pediatrics by undergraduate female medical students was evidenced in this study compared to male students.

Views from the field: Medical student experiences and perceptions of interprofessional learning and collaboration in rural settings

ABSTRACTExploring the perceived environment where students are educated, as well as where they practice, is particularly important for educators and practitioners working in situations of interprofessional rural and remote health. In this study, we explored the perceptions of undergraduate medical students regarding interprofessionalism across their four-year undergraduate program which focuses on rural health. A thematic content analysis of the text-data was conducted on a convenience sample of 47 student responses to essay questions across four cohorts of a four-year undergraduate medical program. The medical program has an explicit social accountability mandate for responsiveness to the needs of a rural population and thus students have multiple opportunities to experience interprofessional education and collaboration in rural contexts. Participants reported (a) blurring and flexibility of roles in a primarily positive manner, (b) participating in unstructured interprofessional learning and collaboration, (c) experiencing the importance of social connections to interprofessional collaboration and learning, and (d) realisations that interprofessional collaboration is a means of overcoming barriers in rural areas. We discuss our findings using the socio-material perspective of complexity theory. These findings may be used to inform undergraduate programs in re-defining, re-creating, developing, and fostering interprofessional learning opportunities for medical students in rural communities as well as to support clinical faculty through ongoing professional development.