An assessment of surgical curriculum on “practical year” by students of Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin

Andrzej Żyluk, Zbigniew Szlosser, Piotr Puchalski

Abstract


Introduction: Modifications to teaching medicine introduced 5 years ago consisted of abolishing the internship, changing the surgical curriculum in the last year of studies by introduction of a so called “practical year”. The objective of this study was investigating how the practical year was undertaken at the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin in the academic year 2017/2018.

Materials and methods: A study was carried in a group of 154 students of the 6th year of Faculty of Medicine, just before the final test-exam in surgery. The questionnaire used in the study consisted of 11 closed questions concerning the organization, course, and accomplishment of the provided program.

Results: The questionnaire results show that the assumed aim of the curriculum, which was a skill/competency-oriente teaching of surgery, was half executed. Students were insufficiently engaged in typical doctor’s activities. One-half of them considered their practical-year as no different from classes practiced in the previous years. Ward-round teaching and the performance of manual skills was considered the most valuable portion of the surgical curriculum. Seminars were scored the lowest, as the least useful. Organization of the classes and the engagement of tutors were evaluated positively by the majority of students. The results of this survey show the grade of accomplishment of the assumed educative aims in teaching surgery in the practical year, and have revealed some drawbacks, which should translate into an improvement of teaching in the forthcoming years.


Keywords


surgical curriculum; undergraduate medical education; teaching methods; teaching outcome measures

Full Text:

PDF Zdalny

References


Żyluk A, Puchalski P, Szlosser Z. The usefulness of the surgical knowledge and skills acquired via the university curriculum for doctors’ medical practice several years after graduation. J Surg Educ 2015;72(3):509-14.

Żyluk A, Szlosser Z, Puchalski P, Walaszek I. Ocena jakości nauczania chirurgii w Pomorskim Uniwersytecie Medycznym w latach 2015-2017. Pol Prz Chir 2018;90(4):17-22.

Żyluk A, Szlosser Z. Assessment of the quality of the 4th year surgical curriculum at the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin for the academic year 2016/2017. Pomeranian J Life Sci 2020;66(1):57-63. doi: 10.21164/pomjlifesci.675.

Spencer J. Learning and teaching in the clinical environment. BMJ 2003;326(7389):591-4.

Jaques D. Teaching small groups. BMJ 2003;326:492-4.

Ker J, Cantillon P, Ambrose L. Teaching on a ward round. BMJ 2008;337:a1930.

Ruesseler M, Obertacke U. Teaching in daily clinical practice: how to teach in a clinical setting. Eur J Trauma Emerg Surg 2011;37(3):313-6.

Claridge A. What is the educational value of ward rounds? A learner and teacher perspective. Clin Med (Lond) 2011;11(6):558-62.

Żyluk A. Jak uczyć chirurgii na studiach medycznych. Warszawa: Medipage; 2018. p. 55-86.

Zundel S, Wolf I, Christen HJ, Huwendiek S. What supports students’ education in the operating room? A focus group study including students’ and surgeons’ views. Am J Surg 2015;210(5):951-9.

O’Neill R, Shapiro M, Merchant A. The role of the operating room in medical student education: differing perspectives of learners and educators. J Surg Educ 2018;75(1):14–28. doi: 0.1016/j.jsurg.2017.06.013.

Hurst JW. The overlecturing and underteaching of clinical medicine. Arch Inter Med 2004;164(15):1605-8.

Żyluk A. Jak uczyć chirurgii na studiach medycznych. Warszawa: Medipage; 2018. p. 115-28.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.21164/pomjlifesci.695

Copyright (c) 2020 Andrzej Żyluk

License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/pl/