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Perception of Pharmacology Education by Medical Sophomore students from 2000 to the present: impact of digital technology and educational policy
Author(s) -
Arai Amy
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.02952
Subject(s) - curriculum , memorization , context (archaeology) , clinical pharmacology , medical education , graduation (instrument) , rote learning , resource (disambiguation) , variety (cybernetics) , attendance , perception , psychology , mathematics education , medicine , pharmacology , teaching method , computer science , pedagogy , cooperative learning , paleontology , computer network , geometry , mathematics , artificial intelligence , economics , biology , economic growth , neuroscience
Pharmacology is one of the disciplines that medical students find difficult to study. Reasons are that there are numerous drug names to remember with a variety of side effects; even within a given class, each drug may have unique advantages or disadvantages with regard to drug‐drug interaction, pharmacokinetics, and contraindications. To make things worse, a deep anxiety about the medical licensing step 1 exam induces students to learn pharmacology through simple rote memorization by relying predominantly on pharm cards and online visual‐mnemonics interfaces, and too little time is spent trying to understand drug action in the context of physiology and cellular biochemistry. Thus, the goal of Pharmacology education seems not to be achieved during the basic science years. Our SIU School of Medicine medical curriculum has introduced unique curriculum methods. This includes problem‐based learning modules (PBLM) and group discussions as major curricular activities in Year 1 and 2 basic science teaching, with optional attendance at resource sessions. In this study, AAMC Graduation Questionnaires and students’ comments on Pharmacology curriculum at SIU School of Medicine are analyzed for the academic years 2001 to 2019. One question addressed if the basic science curriculum provides a sufficient foundation for clinical clerkship. The percentage of ‘Good’ and ‘Fair’ remained similar (35–38%) across 18 years. However, ‘Disagree’ was notably reduced from 16% to less than 10% around 2003, whereas the national average remained about the same. The nature of students’ perceptions on Pharmacology Education and their performance will be discussed in relation to the incorporation of digital technologies like online interfaces, cloud and social media into the curriculum, as well as the introduction of innovative teaching methods. Support or Funding Information None