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Integrating basic science and clinical subject material into a clinically relevant skin‐musculoskeletal course for first‐year medical students
Author(s) -
Severson Arlen R,
Repesh Lillian A,
Westra Ruth E,
Johns Alan M,
Hoffman Richard G
Publication year - 2012
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.26.1_supplement.531.5
Subject(s) - medicine , formative assessment , dissection (medical) , medical education , physical exam , medical physics , surgery , psychology , mathematics education
A clinically relevant integrated skin‐musculoskeletal systems course with the appropriate topics from the basic science disciplines and the clinical physical exam were incorporated into a 7‐week course for first‐year medical students. The course included cadaver dissection of the back and extremities, and the histology, microbiology, physiology, pathology and pharmacology related to skin, muscle, bone and joints. Clinical faculty presented an overview of the most common clinical problems and diseases affecting these anatomical structures. Delivery of the educational content involved several curricular pedagogies: lectures, cadaver laboratory, peer teaching, self‐study, clinical case studies, and physical exam skill sessions. The microbiology component was delivered via self‐study with clinical cases presented in advance of group discussion. The course material was divided into two sections: the first 4 weeks covered skin, basic immunology, laboratory dissection of the back and upper extremities, and physical exam skills related to these areas. The last 3 weeks covered dissection of the lower extremities, physical exam skills, physiology and pharmacology of the neuromuscular junction, and pathology and clinical aspects of muscle, bones and joints. Assessment of the course revealed a high degree of satisfaction for the overall course, with requests for only additional formative assessments.