Pre-graduate teaching of human parasitology for medical laboratory technologist programs in Japan

Abstract

Parasitic diseases continue to exist in many developing countries. In most cases, medical laboratory technologists (MLTs) detect parasitosis, which is then diagnosed and treated by medical doctors. However, parasitological education in medical schools has been declining, particularly in developed countries, leading to a decline in diagnostic ability. Therefore, the role of MLTs has become more critical. However, the current status of parasitology education in MLTs has not been investigated. In this study, a questionnaire survey of 93 schools and the students that are members of the Japanese association of medical technology and offer MLTs training programs was conducted. The educators were asked about the time and content of lectures and practical training, and the students were asked about their understanding of parasitology and the areas they found difficult. A series of χ2 distribution analyses were employed to analyze the data, and the Benjamini–Hochberg method was subsequently used to correct the p-values. This study included 62 out of 93 schools and 1043 students as participants. The results revealed a significant decrease in lecture hours in parasitology compared to 1994, and the trend that may continue in the future. In addition, after attending the lectures, students tended to disregard parasitology as a necessary subject. Pre-study interest was found to have an impact on post-study comprehension. This study is the first to report on the current status of parasitology education in MLTs parasitology training programs in parasite-free countries and can serve as a model for similar studies in other regions in the future.

Programa pedagógico tradicional de la parasitología humana o médica

“…En este modelo, corresponde al profesor la autoridad en la relación con su estudiante (modelo cognoscitivo-paternalista), con clara tendencia a la imposición, coerción y escasa flexibilidad, ya que se considera al estudiante como un simple receptor de información, con plena desvinculación de los procesos que participan en la asimilación del conocimiento y de la estructura interna humana que determina la conducta individual y social, y la influencia que esta puede tener sobre el aprendizaje. Por lo tanto, debido a que la parasitología es una ciencia de la biología de patógenos en constante cambio en su cuerpo de conocimiento, además de estar indisolublemente influenciada por el medio ambiente y el contexto social, es fundamental que se fortalezca el aprendizaje constructivo (28,34,(42)(43)(44)(45)(46)(47)(48)(49) .…”

Blended Learning Effectiveness: Improving Japanese Medical Laboratory Science Students’ Identification of Parasite Eggs

“…In Japan, education on clinically meaningful parasites is provided mainly to students of medicine, pharmacy, and medical laboratory science (Kobayashi & Ikeda, 2015;Sekine, 2022). Although parasites (such as the Japanese indigenous lymphatic filaria, Schistosoma japonicum, and malaria parasites) have been eradicated, parasitic diseases have not disappeared (Tada, 2008;Kasai, Nakatani, Takeuchi, & Crump, 2007).…”