Cancer Pain Education for Medical Students: The Development of a Short Course on CD-ROM: Table 1

Abstract

Objective. The purpose of this study was to assess the educational value and acceptability of a short CD-ROM course on cancer pain management given to third-year medical students at the University of Kentucky.Methods. Thirty-six medical students were given a short-course CD-ROM on cancer pain assessment and management. The Cancer Pain CD-ROM included textual instruction as well as video clips and a 15-item interactive self-assessment examination on cancer pain management. Students were asked to evaluate the computerized course with an 18-item survey using a Likert scale (1 ϭ strongly disagree; 5 ϭ strongly agree).Results. Twenty-seven medical students completed the course, however, only 11 returned evaluations. In general, the medical students appreciated the CD-ROM material, with the exception of the video clips. Students agreed most strongly (mean Ϯ standard deviation [SD]) that the educational material on the CD-ROM was presented clearly (3.9 Ϯ 1.1), the CD-ROM format was easy to use (4.0 Ϯ 0.8), the CD-ROM course improved knowledge of opioid use for cancer pain (4.0 Ϯ 0.7), and the course improved understanding of opioid-related side effects (4.0 Ϯ 0.7). The self-assessment examination on cancer pain was rated easy to use and felt to be helpful (4.0 Ϯ 0.9) for students to identify cancer pain knowledge deficits. The authors estimate that 150 man-hours were needed to complete production of the CD-ROM without any specialized training in computer skills. Conclusions.A short-course computer format program was developed by the authors to teach the basics of cancer pain management to medical students. A minority of students evaluated the program and agreed the material was clearly presented, improved knowledge of opioid analgesia, and was easy to use.Key Words. Cancer Pain; Education; Medical Student; Computer-assisted Learning IntroductionCancer is a worldwide problem resulting in 10% of all deaths. Medical students graduating and practicing in the next millennium will, therefore, be challenged with managing symptoms prevalent in patients with cancer. At the time of cancer diagnosis, one third of patients will experience moderate-tosevere pain, and, when cancer reaches the advanced stages of the disease, 70% of patients will suffer pain [1]. The majority of cancer patients with pain can, however, achieve excellent pain relief using standard analgesics and adjuvant analgesics given on a regular basis as outlined by the World Health Organization (WHO) treatment guidelines for . Since several studies on the efficacy of the WHO cancer pain guidelines suggest that pain relief is possible in 70%-90% of patients using these simple measures [3][4][5][6], health care professionals must be proficient and expert in the assessment and management of cancer pain.Unfortunately, many physicians and nurses demonstrate little awareness of the problem of cancer pain, with inappropriate concerns about side effects, addiction, and tolerance to standard opioid regimens, and a lack of basic pain management skills [7,8]. An important ta...

Relationship between depression and anxiety levels and attitudes of coping with disease in cancer patients

“…[1] Kanser, dünyadaki ölümlerin yaklafl›k %10'ndan sorumlu olan yaflam› tehdit eden kronik bir hastal›kt›r. [2] Kanser, çok say›da ölüme neden olmas›n›n yan› s›ra psikiyatrik bozukluklar›n oluflum riskini de art›r›r. [3] Ölüm olas›l›¤›n›n çok yak›nda gerçekleflebilece¤ini bilmek ve belirlenen tedavi yöntemleri bafll›ca stres kaynaklar›d›r.…”

Evaluation of Testicular Self-examination Technique and Testis Cancer Knowledge Levels of Final-year Medical Students

“…It accounts for 25% of deaths in developed countries and is the second most common cause after ischemic heart disease among all death causes. Cancer is a life-threatening chronic disease responsible for about 10% of global deaths (1,2,3).…”

Web-Based Elective Courses for Medical Students: An Example in Pain

“…Pain education, especially for undergraduates, has been identified as important for changing problematic pain practices [18], yet there are few reports about implementation of new teaching methods for improving pain education in medical schools. In 2002, a short CD-ROM (compact disc read-only memory) course on cancer pain management for third-year medical students at the University of Kentucky was presented [25]. A virtual textbook on pain for U.S. medical schools was proposed in 2003, but it was not subsequently published [11].…”