Assessment of Anatomy Education Teaching Modalities before and during COVID-19 in US Medical Schools

Abstract

Medical schools in the United States, as well as across the world, have undergone curriculum reform in the delivery of anatomy courses, which recently required social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to compare total teaching time across three major types of anatomy curricular formats in preclerkship and clerkship phases of US medical education, and quantitatively describe which tools/teaching modalities are used within different curricula structures across preclinical and clinical anatomy courses as well as evaluate the relative percent of the curricular time their use comprised prior to and during the pandemic. An optional survey instrument (with skip patterns), developed using Qualtrics Software and approved by the author’s home Institutional Review Board, was sent to anatomy course directors at 152 allopathic medical schools, from all four geographic and size categories delineated by the Association of American Medical Colleges. Data were analyzed using Qualtrics XM Stats iQ software. Thirty allopathic US medical institutions were represented in this survey, among which there existed an even distribution across the three integration formats with the majority of instruction occurring in the first-year curriculum. Total anatomy teaching time varied widely, but cadaveric dissection and lectures were the predominant teaching modalities, even during the pandemic. Traditional dissection comprised the majority of contact time compared to alternative modalities, but less than half of respondents currently incorporate new modalities. Approximately half of the schools changed to an all-virtual format for 2020–2021. Among those that were fully virtual, time using 3D anatomy significantly increased. Our results demonstrate that traditional anatomic educational practices remain the mainstay of medical education. Surprisingly, total contact hours in anatomic education varied widely, but there were striking similarities in the use of traditional tools.

Augmented and Virtual Reality in U.S. Education: A Review: Analyzing the Impact, Effectiveness, and Future Prospects of Ar/Vr Tools in Enhancing Learning Experiences

“…This research highlights the importance of sensory modalities in AR/VR tools, enhancing accessibility and inclusivity in learning environments. Cicerchia, Lumpkins, and Puche (2023) assess the teaching modalities in anatomy education before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the shift in educational tools used in medical schools. Their study reveals a significant increase in the use of 3D anatomy tools and virtual modalities during the pandemic, underscoring the adaptability of AR/VR tools in responding to changing educational contexts, such as the need for remote learning.…”