Medical school dermatology education: a scoping review

Abstract

Background Dermatologic disease is widespread and has a significant impact on patient quality of life, however access to appropriate care is often limited. Improved early training during medical school represents a potential upstream solution. Objective This scoping review explores dermatology education during medical school, with a focus on identifying the factors associated with optimising the preparation of future physicians to provide care for patients with skin disease. Methods A literature search was conducted using online databases (EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus) to identify relevant studies. The Joanna Briggs Institute methodological framework for scoping reviews was used, including quantitative and qualitative data analysis following a grounded theory approach. Results From 1490 articles identified, 376 articles were included. Most studies were from the United States (46.3%), United Kingdom (16.2%), Germany (6.4%) and Canada (5.6%). Only 46.8% were published as original articles, with a relatively large proportion either as letters (29.2%) or abstracts (12.2%). Literature was grouped into three themes: teaching content, delivery, and assessment. Core learning objectives were country dependent, however a common thread was the importance of skin cancer teaching and recognition that diversity and cultural competence need greater fostering. Various methods of delivery and assessment were identified, including computer aided and online, audiovisual, clinical immersion, didactic, simulation and peer-led approaches. The advantages and disadvantages of each need to be weighed when deciding which is most appropriate for a given learning outcome. Conclusions The broader teaching-learning ecosystem is influenced by 1) community health needs and medical school resources, and 2) the student and their ability to learn and perform. Efforts to optimise dermatology education may use this review to further investigate and adapt teaching according to local needs and context.