120 - Specialized Advanced Anatomy: A Student-Initiated Elective Course for Second Year Medical Students

Poster Board Number: 120
There are separate poster presentation times for odd and even posters.
Odd poster #s – first hour
Even poster #s – second hour

Abstract Body : Introduction & Purpose: Many U.S. based medical students learn gross anatomy during their first year of medical education and take the USMLE Step 1 examination toward the end of their second year. Evidence suggests that students can rapidly forget anatomical concepts unless they are provided with multiple opportunities for repetition and retrieval of the information in a longitudinal manner. Student concerns about feeling insufficiently prepared for the Step 1 exam are common. Furthermore, with an overall decrease in time allotment for teaching anatomy in the integrated medical curricula, a longitudinal integration of anatomy within the relevant clinical contexts across all years of undergraduate medical education has continued to prove as a promising approach. This study sought to design and assess the impact of a novel anatomy elective course offered for second year students for the first time.
Methods: Specialized Advanced Anatomy course as a fall elective was suggested and partially designed by second year medical students at one medical school. Course curriculum included 14 hours of in-person interactive workshops focused on advanced anatomical review of specific body regions (10 hours) and radiological anatomy/medical imaging (4 hours). Students voted to choose the body regions needing to be reviewed based on their future specialty. Students were also provided with the option of using the gross anatomy lab to revisit their body regions of interest as well as serve as Teaching Assistants for first year medical students. A total of 9 students were enrolled in the course, all of which completed an online survey and participated in a focus group session to discuss their perceptions and experiences. Focus group session was audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. An inductive coding scheme was undertaken to thematically analyze the qualitative data.
Results: According to the survey responses, 8 out of 9 students (89%) felt better prepared for taking the Step 1 exam; and 6 out of 9 students (67%) felt better prepared for their future chosen specialty after taking this elective. Two out of 9 students (22%) were not able to tell whether taking this elective helped with their future specialty as they were not sure about any specific specialty yet. The strongest aspects of the course were deemed as having the chance to: 1) revisit the anatomy in the context of relevant medical imaging (e.g., cardiopulmonary anatomy in the context of a chest X-ray workshop); 2) revisit the anatomy lab after one year in a more focused manner; and 3) reinforce the foundational knowledge and critical thinking skills using practice clinical case questions.
Conclusion: An advanced review-based anatomy elective for second year medical students can help students feel better prepared for the Step 1 exam. It can also help bring more clarity and focus into their chosen area of future specialty.
Significance/Implications: Offering anatomy electives can serve as an effective step toward the goal of longitudinal integration of basic science in undergraduate medical education. The next steps in this study will include further developing this course to accommodate the needs of third- and fourth-year medical students in the upcoming years as well. Future studies will be needed to assess the impact of this course in long term retention of knowledge and actual student performance on the USMLE exams.