Microsurgical Simulation Training Enhances Medical Student Subinternship Experience.

BackgroundPakistan grapples with the issue of an inadequate neurosurgery workforce but the reasons for such a disparity remain uncertain. Previous studies have highlighted how various factors including medical school experiences have an impact on career choice, but no study has delved into the impact of medical school exposure among Pakistani medical students, especially for the field of neurosurgery. This study aims to evaluate the impact of neurosurgery exposure, mentorship, and interest groups on medical students' decision to pursue neurosurgery.MethodsA national cross-sectional survey was conducted in Pakistan, collecting data from medical students, interns, and medical officers over a one-month period. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethical Review Committee at Aga Khan University, Pakistan. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 26.ResultsOut of 2618 participants, 38.0% were male and 62.0% were female, with an average age of 21.82 years (± 2.65). Among them, only 358 (13.6%) were interested in pursuing neurosurgery as a career, while the remaining 2,260 (86.3%) were not. More females (58.9%) than males (41.1%) expressed interest in pursuing neurosurgery as their intended career. Most medical students interested in pursuing neurosurgery were in the early years of their medical school (1st Year: 19.6%, 2nd Year: 26.0%, 3rd Year: 20.9%). In our study, students from public sector institutions (52.2%) showed more interest in neurosurgery as a career choice compared to those from private sector institutions (44.1%). The main deterrents for choosing neurosurgery were intense training (42.2%), work-life balance (39.9%), limited residency slots (56.7%), medical knowledge (34.1%), and surgical skills (36.6%).ConclusionThis study highlights the need for increased student engagement to inculcate the decision to pursue neurosurgery among medical students in Pakistan. A significant gap is highlighted, with the majority of interested students in early years. Public sector students show higher interest than their private sector counterparts. However, barriers like intense training, limited residency slots, and work-life balance concerns influence career choice. Targeted interventions like mentorship programs are crucial for fostering future neurosurgeons and advancing patient care and research. By addressing the identified disparities in experiences and promoting a supportive educational environment, it is possible to cultivate a future generation of skilled and dedicated neurosurgeons who can contribute to advancements in patient care and research in the field.

How I Do It: Improving Resident Led Medical Student Education With Premade Chalk Talks.

Laboratory medicine is an integral component of patient care. Approximately 60% to 70% of medical decisions are based on laboratory results. Physicians in specialties that order the tests are teaching medical students laboratory medicine and test use with minimal input from laboratory scientists who implement and maintain the quality control for those tests. To develop, implement, and evaluate a 1.5-day medical student clinical laboratory experience for fourth-year medical students in their last month of training. The experience was devised and directed by laboratory scientists and included a panel discussion, laboratory tours, case studies that focused on the goals and objectives recently published by the Academy of Clinical Laboratory Physicians and Scientists, and medical-student presentations highlighting salient points of the experience. The same knowledge quiz was administered at the beginning and end of the experience and 84 students took both quizzes. A score of 7 or more was obtained by 16 students (19%) on the initial quiz, whereas 34 (40%) obtained the same score on the final quiz; the improvement was found to be statistically significant (P = .002; t = 3.215), particularly in 3 out of the 10 questions administered. Although the assessment can only measure a small amount of knowledge recently acquired, the improvement observed by fourth-year medical students devoting a short period to learning laboratory medicine principles was encouraging. This medical student clinical laboratory experience format allowed teaching of a select group of laboratory medicine principles in 1.5 days to an entire medical school class.

Beyond its applications in other settings, virtual reality (VR) technology has gained attention in medical education, offering immersive learning experiences. Previous research has demonstrated its potential as an educational tool in medical settings, highlighting enhanced educational outcomes, skill acquisition and retention, standardized training experiences, and the promotion of active learning. However, there is still a dearth of research exploring various aspects of VR user experiences, with most studies focusing on its effect on skill acquisition. Limited qualitative research further hinders an in-depth understanding of user experiences, restricting a comprehensive overview of VR's potential in medical education. This study explored subjective experiences with VR simulation training and its perceived benefits and challenges among medical students in the United Kingdom, using the 5 domains of the Immersive Technology Evaluation Measure (ITEM). In July 2024, 15- to 20-minute in-person interviews were conducted with 11 medical students who had completed the immersive VR training consisting of the assessment and treatment of a virtual patient. Guided by the 5 domains of the ITEM as preconceived themes, a deductive thematic analysis was used to explore individual experiences with the training, embedded within narrative responses. Findings aligned with the 5 a priori ITEM domains of system usability, immersion, motivation, cognitive load, and debriefing. Within these predefined domains, new subthemes emerged that enhanced the understanding of user experience. Participants reported usability barriers involving accessibility, technical issues, and limited variability in scenarios. Immersion was generally strong due to realistic environments, although reduced interactivity constrained authenticity. Motivation was reflected in active engagement and a greater sense of preparedness for clinical practice. Cognitive load was associated with divided attention, physical effects, and a need for clearer guidance and familiarization. Ultimately, participants valued debriefing sessions as valuable opportunities for reflection and reinforcing knowledge. VR training fosters immersion and motivation, but its effectiveness depends on balancing technical usability with cognitive demands. Future integration should prioritize design variability and structured debriefing to optimize learning outcomes. Refinement of immersive VR training in clinical education is also warranted, alongside further research in broader contexts and longitudinal use.

Opiate use disorders and overdose: Medical students' experiences, satisfaction with learning, and attitudes toward community naloxone provision

BackgroundClinical and research electives abroad offer medical students many unique experiences. However, participating in an unfamiliar health-care setting combined with limited medical experience may place students at risk of illness. To improve pre-and post-travel care, we assessed the health risks and the quality and comprehensiveness of pre-and post-travel care in a cohort of Dutch medical students returning form an elective abroad.MethodsAll medical students who had performed an elective in the tropics between July 2006 and December 2008 were sent an informative email asking them to complete a web-based questionnaire.Results180 of 242 (74%) students completed the questionnaire. Regarding the risk of bloodborne viral infection: 67% of all students and 32% of junior students engaged in procedures that constitute a risk of exposure to bloodborne viral infection, often in countries with high HIV prevalence rates. None of nine students who experienced possible or certain mucosal or percutaneous exposure to potentially infectious body fluids reported the exposure at the time it occurred and none used PEP. Regarding other health risks: 8 of 40 (20%) students stopped using mefloquine due to adverse effects. This left a sizeable proportion unprotected in countries that are hyperendemic for malaria. Post-travel screening for schistosomiasis, tuberculosis (tuberculin skin test) and carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) encompassed approximately half of all students who should have been screened.ConclusionsBased on the results of this study we have adopted an integral set of measures to reduce the health risks associated with an elective abroad. The pre and post-travel consult has been centralized and standardized as well as the distribution of PEP. In addition we have developed a mandatory module on Global Health for all medical students planning an elective abroad.

Introduction. In many countries, the concept of OTC drugs, among others, is defined in advance by the assumed maximum period of their use – usually 3-5 days. In fact, many patients often benefit from these opportunities too often, use medication for longer than 3-5 days and prefer symptomatic treatment rather than causal. OTC drugs give people a sense of freedom and subjectivity. Numerous doctors claim that too much freedom in this case can prove dangerous. Aim. The aim of this study was to analyze the changes in attitudes towards the use of OTC drugs in medicine students as they acquire knowledge and medical experience. Material and methods. The study looked at 178 students of the Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Lublin (89 – 1 and 2 year students as well 89 – 5 and 6 year ones). A diagnostic survey was used as a tool for obtaining responses from the participants. The survey was conducted between October 2014 and November 2014. Results. Almost 90% of medical students use OTC drugs for self-medication, while only 11% of them have never used such medicine. Analysis of students’ attitudes indicate that acquired medical knowledge has no effect on the frequency using this type of treatment. Overall, students tend to use such drugs occasionally. Only some 14-23% of them use the OTC drugs on a regular basis. The motivations for the use such drugs include: convenience, the previous experiences implying the efficacy of drugs, less frequent are other reasons. Some 28% of the students participating in the study and at least 13% of graduating medical students accept prolonged use of OTC drugs. As the consequence acquisition of medical knowledge, the students are less likely to consult their self-medication attitudes with doctors, families and friends, more often and accurately read the leaflets for drugs, and are more and more reluctant to proposals for extending the assortment of available OTC drugs. Conclusions. 1. Almost 90% of medical students use OTC drugs for self-treatment. 2. 28% of polled 1-2 year medical students and at least 13% of graduating ones may have tendencies to abuse drugs. 3. Over the subsequent years of study, medical students more often read medicine leaflets, they become less reliant on the advice they receive from their family or friends regarding self-treatment or they are less willing to extend the range of available OTC drugs.

"Core syllabus" in this work refers to knowledge topics that an instructor should necessarily and indispensably address during a discipline. This study describes the process of developing a regional human embryology core syllabus for undergraduate medical courses in Brazil, using a two-round modified Delphi method as a tool for reaching consensus. A list of 679 human embryology topics was generated based on three textbooks. The Delphi panel consisted of specialists (n=51) with at least 2 years' medical experience in activities related to the contents of embryology or health sciences professionals with at least 5 years' experience in undergraduate medical education of embryology and other cognate disciplines. The panel rated the relevance of each topic on a Likert scale. Following consensus analysis, a list of 69 "core" topics was obtained. Then, in a second Delphi round, the panel was asked to "accept," "accept with modifications," or "reject" the new list. The research team performed a final revision/screening process and generated a core human embryology syllabus comprised of 63 topics. Comparing this regional syllabus with two international core syllabuses also built Delphi panels, 60.3% of the topics overlap with both syllabuses, and 39.7% of its content is unique. This study can be a valuable tool for decision-making in the embryology curriculum for health courses and reinforces the importance of local evaluation of international curricula of human embryology before implementing them, since the incidences of congenital anomalies vary in different regions of the world.

This study explored graduate-entry medical students' experiences of health-advice requests from their family and friends. This was a descriptive thematic analysis study involving a convenience sample of medical students from the University of Warwick 4-year MB ChB graduate-entry medicine programme. Each participating student attended a one-to-one semi-structured interview. Audio recordings of the interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically. Data saturation of the main themes was achieved following 14 interviews. Of the 14 students, eight (57%) were males and six (43%) were females. Students were asked to advise on a range of human and veterinary health issues. They were prepared to offer advice on health issues that they felt competent to manage: for example, first-aid scenarios that a 'reasonable layperson' or a first-aider would be able to help with. The nature of health advice given by students became increasingly complex as they progressed through their degree programme; however, they generally refrained from giving advice on complex health issues and chose to refer the individual to seek help from competent professionals instead. Previous research highlighted inappropriate advice could delay individuals seeking help from competent professionals, resulting in adverse clinical outcomes; however, we recommend that students should not be discouraged to act as good Samaritans. Instead, educators could help them to explore the professionalism and ethical issues raised by these requests, and the practical ways of handling these requests sensitively through discussion of case scenarios with acceptable and inappropriate behaviours. This study explored graduate-entry medical students' experiences of health-advice requests from their family and friends.

BackgroundDuring the Covid-19 pandemic medical students were offered paid roles as medical student healthcare assistants. Anecdotal reports suggested that students found this experience rich for learning. Previous studies have explored alternative models of student service, however this defined medical student support role is novel.MethodsIndividual semi-structured interviews were recorded with 20 medical students at a UK medical school exploring their experiences of placement learning and experiences of working as healthcare assistants. Responses were analysed qualitatively using a framework approach. The framework was developed into a model describing key findings and their relationships.ResultsInterviews yielded data that broadly covered aspects of (1) Medical students’ experiences of clinical placement learning (2) Medical students’ experiences of working as medical student healthcare assistants (3) Learning resulting from working as a healthcare assistant (4) Hierarchies and professional barriers in the clinical environment (5) Influences on professional identity.Participants described barriers and facilitators of clinical learning and how assuming a healthcare assistant role impacted on learning and socialisation within the multidisciplinary team. Students became increasingly socialised within the healthcare team, contributing directly to patient care; the resulting social capital opened new opportunities for learning, team working and enhanced students’ interprofessional identity. Students described the impact of these experiences on their aspirations for their future practice.ConclusionsChanges to work patterns in healthcare and delivery models of medical education have eroded opportunities for students to contribute to healthcare delivery and be embedded within a team. This is impacting negatively on student learning and socialisation and we suggest that medical curricula have much to learn from nursing and allied health professional training. Longitudinal embedment with a multidisciplinary team, where students have a defined role and work directly with patients may not only add value to clinical service, but also overcome current barriers to effective placement learning and interprofessional identity formation for medical students.

Resitting, being offered a ‘second chance’ at an exam following failure to achieve a passing grade, is both common and stressful in medical school. There is a significant gap in the medical education literature around evidence-based support for resitting medical students. The study explores medical student experiences of resits through a peer-assisted learning programme (PAL) delivered to early years resitting medical students at Imperial College School of Medicine (ICSM) in 2021 and 2022. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first qualitative study analysing early years medical students’ experiences of resitting exams. The authors performed an inductive thematic analysis of 22 semi-structured interviews with early years medical students who resat exams at ICSM in 2022. The authors identified three key themes and a cross-cutting theme: Theme 1. Self: students’ individual and internal characteristics and experiences that influenced their journey of resitting exams. Subthemes included self-sufficiency and students’ emotional approach to resitting; Theme 2. Others: resitting students’ social networks. Subthemes explored students’ relationships as part of the ICSM academic community, with near-peer role models and with their emotional support networks; Theme 3. Structures: organisational and structural factors that influence student experiences of resit exams. Subthemes included academic information, welfare, and socio-economic factors. Cross-cutting theme. Stigma: experienced a lack of open communication around resitting. The data emphasises the holistic nature of resitting, with students’ self-image, their relationships with others, and the structural and institutional context all impacting on their experience, cross-cut with their experience of stigma through silence. The authors suggest that resitting is about more than academic ability: the broader context of resit stigma plays a key role in students’ experiences of resits. PAL may be a useful tool to address resit stigma alongside institutional commitments to rethink medical school culture around academic failure

Introduction The Clinical Topics in Global Health course introduces students to the most important global health problems with a focus on clinical practice. This multi-disciplinary, skills...

To investigate doctors', nurses' and medical students' experiences with, and attitudes of health care personnel towards, crying in hospitals. Descriptive, cross-sectional study, using self-report questionnaires. The sample comprised 52 doctors (response rate, 33%) and 103 nurses (response rate, 58%) from three Sydney metropolitan general hospitals, and 101 sixth-year medical students (response rate, 99%). Crying was frequent in hospitals; 57% of doctors, 76% of nurses and 31% of medical students had cried at work in the hospital at least once, and women cried significantly more often than men. Being a nurse significantly increased, whereas being a medical student significantly decreased, the likelihood of crying. Medical students reported the highest percentage of negative social consequences of their own crying (e.g., being ridiculed or screamed at). The main reason for all respondents' crying was identification and bonding with suffering and dying patients or their families. The respondents generally viewed crying by patients as a healthy response, and they were empathetic towards the crying patient. About one-third of the respondents were interested in (or would consider) using psychological help to explore their own emotional reactions to crying. Despite its limited sample, this study suggests that the topic of "crying" should be included in medical training, and that support be provided for medical staff who are distressed by crying behaviour in hospitals.

We assessed the impact of resident teaching in medical students' overall assessment of an obstetrics and gynecology clerkship. Between September 2007 and March 2010, third-year medical students completed a questionnaire at the end of their clerkship. Questions covered the number of topics they recalled learning about from residents, perceptions of the quality of education received from residents, perceptions of the experience with the residents as teachers, and overall rating of the obstetrics and gynecology clerkship. Questionnaires were completed by all medical students (N = 74), with 63 students returning complete surveys. There was a small correlation between the number of topics students recalled learning about from residents and ratings of quality of education (r = 0.249, P = .03), a small correlation between the number of topics students recalled learning about from residents and level of satisfaction with the clerkship (r = 0.262, P = .04), and a larger correlation between assessment of the overall experience with residents as teachers and ratings of quality of education received from residents (r = 0.687, P < .001). Overall experience with residents as teachers and perceived quality of education from residents were both associated with satisfaction with the clerkship (r = 0.756, P < .001 and r = 0.603, P < .001, respectively). A regression model with these variables accounted for 58% of the variability in students' ratings of the clerkship (F = 27.103, P < .001, R = .761, R(2) = .579). The only significant independent variable was assessment of the overall experience with residents as teachers (t = 5.350, P < .001). Quality of interactions between residents and medical students is a key factor in medical students' assessment of their clerkship.

Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the educational environment has moved toward online-based education, which may significantly impact medical students' educational experiences. However, the same events may be understood differently by different individuals depending on their personalities. Therefore, the changing educational environment during the COVID-19 pandemic may not have been perceived equally by all students. This study aimed to investigate medical students' personality profiles and the difference between academic burnout and engagement according to their personality profiles. During the 2021-2022 academic year, when online-based education was implemented due to the pandemic, a survey was conducted among medical students in Korea (N=325). First, we used latent profile analysis to identify the sub-types of the Big Five personalities. Second, we used analysis of variance and post hoc comparisons to study the difference between academic burnout and engagement among these sub-types. The Big Five personality traits of medical students in our sample were classified into three profiles. Profiles with relatively high neuroticism, while other personality traits were low, had both the highest academic burnout and academic engagement. Alternatively, the profiles showing relatively low neuroticism, while other personality traits were high, had the lowest academic burnout and the highest academic engagement. Personality is a stable trait that affects an individual's behavior and response to the environment. Thus, individuals with specific personalities differ in their reactions to their environment. This may provide an advantage to some medical students' careers.