Journal of Medical Education
Volume:19 Issue: 3, Aug 2020

Rapid technological changes, reduced job security, the need for developing professional skills, and the urgent need for capable and adaptable physicians are the important issues that medical, educational systems must pay more attention to. Based on existing evidence, outcome-based education is the best approach for facing this situation, and competency-based education is a preferred strategy for planning and quality assurance of medical education. CanMED in 2015 claimed that competency-based education is known as the preferred educational approach and developed a framework consisting of seven competency groups. Graham Cheetham and Chivers denoted that professional competencies included a set of skills. Also, ACGME provided six main capabilities for the physician in which a variety of skills were required for carrying out professional tasks. One of the important dimensions of these skills is general skills that play an important role in the ability of the individual to apply his/her learning and can be used generally in all activities. In this study, this part of skills is conceptualized as “meta-skills” because the ability to build and develop other skills in individuals is formed through the acquisition of these meta-skills. We divided meta-skills into three groups, including psychomotor meta-skills, basic cognitive meta-skills, and higher-order thinking meta-skills, and developed an analytical definition for each group with certain defining attributes.

The environment where education takes place is essential for students’ engagement and motivation. This study aimed at assessing students’ perception of their educational environment at a private medical college and the influence of gender, among other factors, on it.

The study assessed the students’ perception of their learning environment, determined the gender effect on environment perception, and examined the correlation between different study variables.

This is a cross-sectional study on 340 undergraduate medical students at a private college with gender-segregated programs. The Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM) was used to determine the students' perception of their learning environment. This was correlated with a set of variables, including gender and educational achievement as indicated by students' GPA.

The overall DREEM score was ‘more positive than negative’ (114.39/200). The scores of subscales were towards the positive side. This was evident in the perception of learning (26.64/48), perception of teaching (26.36/44), perception of the atmosphere (26.51/48), academic self-perception (19.54/32), and social self-perception (15.33/28).

There were statistically significant differences between the perceptions of males and females in both the overall DREEM scale (females: 117.59/200 and males: 111.18/200) and three of the subscales. Female students perceived their learning environment more positively. Moreover, satisfaction with the learning environment was correlated with scholastic achievement. In addition, the more positively perceived learning environment could explain higher scholastic achievement in female students than in male students.

 Good communication skill is as crucial for the medical practitioner as medical knowledge for better patient outcome. Incorporating simulated patients for teaching communication skills and assessment can be beneficial for the learners as it gives them learning opportunities under a controlled environment.

 1. To assess the improvement in communication skills with the use of simulated patients after communication skills training. 2. To obtain feedback from simulated patients about patient satisfaction. 3. To obtain feedback from students and faculties about communication skills training intervention and simulated patients for assessment.

 After a thorough introduction and explanation of the study, out of total of 139 students from the fifth-semester bachelor of medicine and bachelor of surgery (MBBS), 44 students gave the willingness to participate. Students were divided into two groups of 22 students; one group acted as doctors, and the other group acted as a standardized patient group. Each simulated patient was randomly assigned to one doctor to make a pair; thus, 22 random pairs of doctor and patients were formed. Before and after giving communication skills training, each doctor-patient pair's consultation was analyzed for clinical communication skills using the Kalamazoo scale adapted version by trained observers. After each consultation, each patient was given a patient satisfaction questionnaire to fill.

 In this study, students were improved significantly in each competency of the Kalamazoo scale after communication skills training. Before giving this training, the total mean communication skills score of students was 49.86 (SD=10.73), and after training, it significantly improved to 75.45 (SD=15.78) (P < 0.05). Before the training, the mean patient's satisfaction score was 48.95 (SD=12.18), which significantly improved after training to 60.36 (SD=3.99) (P < 0.05). Students as well as observers, found the Kalamazoo scale very useful for communication skills training and assessment. In feedback, they mentioned that the simulated patient approach for the assessment of communication skills was useful.

 This study showed that the clinical communication skills training with a structured scale was helpful for medical students. Students were found interested in learning such new skills; thus, clinical communication skills training should be an integral part of medical education. Simulated patients were found useful and can be used for the assessment of other clinical skills in medical education.

 Clinical exposure to acutely unwell pediatric patients is often limited during undergraduate medical training. Although limited within undergraduate pediatric curricula, simulation-based education (SBE) offers a tool with which such exposure can be achieved in a safe and effective learning environment. This study describes the development, implementation, and evaluation of an undergraduate multi-center immersive pediatric SBE course.

 We sought to increase medical students’ exposure to acutely unwell pediatric patients and provide practical experience to improve their understanding of the importance of non-technical skills within the clinical workplace, such as teamwork, communication skills, leadership, and situational awareness. Furthermore, we sought to evaluate the impact on students’ confidence in assessing and managing acutely unwell pediatric patients while exploring their perceptions and opinions of the course.

 The present study included all final-year students who were on a pediatric clinical placement during the study period. Tutorials on pediatric A-E assessment and fluid management were followed by a series of immersive simulation scenarios and structured debriefs, concentrating on the importance of non-technical skills in the clinical workplace. Also, some mini-tutorials were incorporated into the course design, focussing on the technical and pathophysiological aspects of each presentation. We employed a mixed-method research methodology to evaluate the impact of the course. Also, anonymized post-course and free-text feedback was sought to explore students’ experiences and perceptions of the course.

 All 80 students completed the pre and post-course confidence questionnaires, reporting statistically significant improvements in confidence across all 11 domains tested. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data identified six core themes: knowledge acquisition, the value of debriefing, the importance of non-technical skills, the value of faculty expertise, the value of repeated practice, and opportunities for exposure to pediatrics. The innovative post-scenario mini-tutorials were favorably received.

 Our study shows that immersive SBE can improve medical students’ confidence in managing pediatric emergency scenarios. Also, incorporating mini-tutorials within an immersive simulation course design in an undergraduate setting can be helpful and well received by students.
 

 The flipped classroom model provides an ideal ground to convert a traditional classroom into an interactive environment based on problem-solving learning with a focus on university students’ self-determination.

 The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of flipped and traditional teaching methods in problem-solving learning and self-determination among university students.

 The research method was experimental with a pretest-posttest design and a control group. The statistical population included all female students of Farhangian University in Ahvaz city in the academic year 2019. Using a purposive sampling method, 36 students were selected and randomly divided into experimental and control groups (n = 18 per group). The research instrument included the Problem-Solving Inventory (PSI) and the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction scale. The experimental group received the flipped teaching program during eight 120-min sessions once a week; however, the control group received the traditional teaching method. multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA), univariate analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), and Bonferroni post hoc tests were used to analyze the data.

 The posttest scores (mean ± SD) of problem-solving learning and self-determination were 83.77 ± 14.17 and 119.33 ± 13.79, respectively, in the experimental group, which were significantly different from the scores of the control group. The flipped classroom promoted problem-solving learning and components of self-determination among university students in the experimental group when compared to the control group (P = 0.01). The flipped teaching method was more effective than the traditional method in increasing problem-solving learning and self-determination among university students.

 According to the findings, the flipped teaching method had greater impacts on students’ problem-solving and self-determination than had the traditional method.

 The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of integrating team-based learning sessions in undergraduate medical ethics education. Though used effectively in other pre-clinical courses, team-based learning is not frequently used in medical ethics education. Student’s accountability for learning, preference for team-based learning, and satisfaction were studied.

 Three team-based learning sessions covering focal topics in medical ethics was introduced in the pre-clinical Health Care Ethics course for students at the College of Medicine and Health Sciences, National University of Science and Technology. On the completion of three modules, the team-based learning student assessment instrument (TBL-SAI) by Heidi Mennenga was used to evaluate student perceptions. To this aim, 118 students who had registered for the Health Care Ethics course completed the survey.

 The findings indicated that students reported a positive experience of team-based learning in medical ethics education. Students also indicated high accountability for their learning, a high preference for team-based learning to lectures in the medical ethics course, and high satisfaction.

 Team-based learning is thus preferred by students to cover topics and courses in medical ethics. Integrating team-based modules in medical ethics education will enhance self-directed learning, improve teamwork, and help students effectively recall and apply information. It is therefore recommended to integrate team-based learning sessions in medical ethics education.