Implications of introducing case based radiological images in anatomy on teaching, learning and assessment of medical students: a mixed-methods study

Abstract

Background Introducing radiological anatomy in the preclinical curriculum can increase the understanding of Anatomy. Regardless of the integration when teaching anatomy, it is essential to maintain oversight as to what and how much is being taught. In addition, the knowledge requirements for preclinical students should be considered. The purpose of this kind of integration is that the student should be able to apply the knowledge which can help them better understand anatomy and not to make the course more challenging. This study aimed to understand whether adding radiological images would increase the difficulty level of the questions. Methods We introduced radiological images, including X Rays, CT scans and MRIs, when teaching anatomy in the preclinical curriculum. A class of 99 students were tested using A-type MCQs (n = 84). All 84 questions were categorized on whether they were case-based with or without a radiological image. The item analysis of both groups of test questions was then compared based on their difficulty and discrimination index. A qualitative student perception regarding the inclusion of radiological images in anatomy was also measured using a questionnaire with a 5-point Likert scale. Results The results showed that the performance level of the students was similar when comparing the test questions in both groups. The item analysis of the MCQs in the two groups revealed that by integrating radiological images when teaching anatomy, the various parameters in both groups of test questions were in the same range. More than 80% of the students felt that radiological images facilitate the achievement of learning outcomes and help to apply their knowledge in clinical contexts. The study's findings reported that the rate of satisfaction by including radiological images when teaching anatomy is high. Conclusion Recognition and interpretation of images are essential in an undergraduate medical program. Students found it helpful when radiological images were introduced to them when teaching anatomy. Since the students' performance in summative exams in both groups of questions was in the same range, the findings also point out that adding radiological images when teaching anatomy does not increase the difficulty of the subject.

Living and post‐mortem CT scans in the gross anatomy lab: A study investigating differences in first‐year medical students' exam performance and perceptions

“…cadaveric versus living) of imaging is not as important as the inclusion of imaging in general to guide student understanding of spatial relationships. Indeed, others have reported positive benefits associated with use of nonpathological CT images from living subjects to enhance students' knowledge of spatial relationships, 24,25 further supporting the importance of imaging in general for spatial anatomical understanding. A recent study took CT visualization one step further by asking whether the modality of viewing the images made a difference with respect to spatial understanding 23 .…”

Improving student learning and performance through a continuous flipped anatomy teaching model

“…Learning performance was also measured via cases‐based questions, which assess knowledge application in clinical contexts (Rathan et al., 2022). Interestingly, however, no difference was detected in students' marks on case‐based questions between two cohorts of students.…”

Nuevos Recursos Digitales y 3D en la Enseñanza de Anatomía. Experiencia Internacional Reportada en el “Sectra Users Meeting 2019”, Karolinska Institutet, Suecia, antes de la Pandemia de COVID-19

“…El producto de esas investigaciones se ha aplicado con éxito en los laboratorios de anatomía y diversos centros formadores de profesionales de la salud, tal como se ha reportado en varios meta análisis (Yammine & Violato, 2015, 2016. Por otra parte, la manera de integrar didácticamente los recursos anatómicos clásicos, en conjunto con innovaciones, tales como las técnicas de imágenes médicas, han sido muy bien articulados y propuestos ya desde los primeros años del siglo XXI, dando así las directrices sobre cómo organizar un eficiente programa de anatomía orientado hacia la clínica (Rizzolo et al, 2006).…”