Evidence Based Medicine Teaching in Undergraduate Medical Education: A Literature Review

Abstract

the terms of the Creative Commons-AttributionNoncommercial-Share Alike License 2.5 Canada (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ca/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly attributed, not used for commercial purposes, and, if transformed, the resulting work is redistributed under the same or similar license to this one. AbstractObjectives -To determine the year when evidence based medicine (EBM) was introduced and the extent to which medical students were exposed to EBM in undergraduate medical education and to investigate how EBM interventions were designed, developed, implemented, and evaluated in the medical curriculum.Methods -A qualitative review of the literature on EBM interventions was conducted to synthesize results of studies published from January 1997 to December 2011. A comprehensive search was performed on PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses, PsycINFO, and ERIC. Articles were selected if the studies involved some form of quantitative and qualitative research design. Articles were excluded if they studied EBM interventions in medical schools outside the United States or if they examined EBM interventions for allied health profession education or at the levels of graduate medical education and continuing medical education. Thirteen studies which met the selection criteria were identified and reviewed. Information was abstracted including study design, year and setting of EBM intervention, instructional method, instruction delivery format, outcome measured, and evaluation method.Results -EBM was introduced to preclinical years in three studies, integrated into clinical clerkship rotations in primary care settings in eight studies, and spanned preclinical and clinical curricula in two studies. The duration of EBM interventions differed, ranging from a workshop of three student contact hours to a curriculum of Evidence Based Library and Information Practice 2012, 7.3 99 30 student contact hours. Five studies incorporated interactive and clinically integrated teaching and learning activities to support student learning. Diverse research designs, EBM interventions, and evaluation methods resulted in heterogeneity in results across the 13 studies.Conclusions -The review reveals wide variations in duration of EBM interventions, instructional methods, delivery formats for EBM instruction, implementation of an EBM intervention, outcomes measured, and evaluation methods, all of which remain relevant issues for further research. It is important for medical educators and health sciences librarians to attend to these issues in designing and delivering a successful EBM intervention in the undergraduate medical curriculum.

Students’ perceptions about the family medicine course in Qassim, Saudi Arabia

“…A number of other studies have shown positive students' preference of EBM. Currently, it has become a commonly addressed topic (Ilic & Forbes 2010;Mi 2012) and a requirement in all postgraduate training programs in Saudi Arabia.…”

Teaching and Learning and Self-Assessment in Nuclear Hospital (NH) versus Affiliated (AH) Hospitals Surgical Clerkship in the 6th year of the Faculty of Medicine - Oporto University (FMUP) (Analysis of 913 students)

“…During clerkship, students were reminded of the importance of teaching-learning in problem solving (24), which is of particular interest, mainly in the performance of clinical tasks of the medical profession, as well as in the development of "learning styles" skills, internet, database consulting, literature and audiovisual methods, as well as inherent cognitive critical analysis (25,26). The importance of this methodology justified its inclusion in the medical curriculum (27).…”

Instructional methods used by health sciences librarians to teach evidence-based practice (EBP): a systematic review

“…There were systematic reviews that analyzed general information literacy skills training in the health sciences and the most effective methods for teaching information literacy skills to undergraduate students [12,44,45], but these studies did not address EBP instruction or directly focus on the role of the librarian in teaching EBP. Other literature reviews summarized EBM instruction in undergraduate medical education but excluded other health professional students and did not discuss the role of the librarian in teaching EBM [46,47].…”