. Syed Irfan Ali; . Jarina Begum; . D. Lakshmi Lalitha; . M. Ganesh Kamath; . Rajesh Kumar Sethi; . Aruna Rani Behera
Volume 11, Issue 11 , December 2021, , Pages 1-7
Abstract
BACKGROUND: An Indian medical graduate needs to be competent in the diagnosis andmanagement of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients. This is crucial in terms of occupationalsafety. ...
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BACKGROUND: An Indian medical graduate needs to be competent in the diagnosis andmanagement of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients. This is crucial in terms of occupationalsafety. A participatory learning approach could be a possible way to change behavior and improveHIV risk assessment skills among medical students for better occupational safety and health care. Thepresent study was planned to identify the need, provide different learning experiences for acquiringcompetency, and compare the effectiveness of participatory learning over traditional in developingHIV risk assessment skills.MATERIALS AND METHODS: An educational interventional (randomized controlled trial) wascarried out at GEMS and Hospital. Needs assessment survey was conducted, which identified HIVrisk assessment as a key competency. For which the outcome‑specific learning objectives weredefined, two different learning experiences were employed. A pretest was conducted to assess thebaseline knowledge and attitude (n = 92); they were then divided into two equal groups (A and B).“A” group was taught by participatory approach, whereas “B” by traditional techniques followed byposttest and objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) to assess their HIV risk assessmentskills. Statistical analysis: Paired t‑test for assessing knowledge and attitude within the same groupand unpaired t‑test for assessing skills between the two groups were used in this study.RESULTS: Statistically significant improvement (P < 0.001) in knowledge and attitude scores wasnoticed that OSCE scores were significantly higher in the intervention group “A” (P < 0.001) ascompared to “B” taught by traditional techniques.CONCLUSION: Participatory learning effectively builds upon existing knowledge and attitude todevelop better HIV risk assessment skills.