. Lalita Fernandes; . Anthony Menezes Mesquita
Volume 8, Issue 6 , June 2018, , Pages 1-6
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Respiratory diseases are a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide.A sound knowledge of management of respiratory diseases is thus very vital. The clinical exposureof ...
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BACKGROUND: Respiratory diseases are a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide.A sound knowledge of management of respiratory diseases is thus very vital. The clinical exposureof undergraduate medical students is limited to 2 weeks in pulmonary medicine. We hypothesizedthat the short duration of posting can be best utilized by developing need‑based modules for bedsideteaching.AIMS: This study aimed to determine gain in knowledge and skills of final‑year medical studentsin diagnosis and management of common pulmonary diseases and assess students’ perception ofthe module.METHODS: A one‑group pretest‑posttest quasi‑experimental study design enrolled a conveniencesample of 48 final‑year medical students. Twenty‑four students were posted at a given time for thebedside clinical posting in pulmonary medicine between August 2013 and November 2013. Thesestudents were divided randomly into two groups of 12 students each. All students consented to bepart of the study. Two trained faculty taught in rotation. The bedside teaching module was preparedby Delphi technique and curriculum was based on Kern’s six‑step approach. History taking, physicalexamination, tuberculosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, lung cancer, chest X‑rays,and spirometry were taught. Students were administered pre‑ and post‑test questionnaires to assessknowledge, while Objective Structured Clinical Examination assessed skills. Students’ feedbackquestionnaire evaluated the teaching module. A two‑tailed paired sample t‑test assessed mean gainin knowledge and skills. Effect size was calculated by Cohen’s d, while Cronbach’s alpha estimatedthe reliability testing of perception questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using statisticalsoftware package IBM SPSS version 23.RESULTS: Mean pre‑ and posttest knowledge scores were 12.46 (8.09) and 43.17 (10.7),respectively, P = 0.001. Mean pre‑ and posttest skills scores were 7.00 (4.76) and 24.79 (3.31),respectively, P = 0.001, and Cohen’s d showed large effect size. Most students stated that themodule enhanced their clinical skills, helped to understand difficult material, and promoted inquiryand thinking. Cronbach’s alpha for perception questionnaire was 0.854.CONCLUSIONS: Structured bedside teaching module in pulmonary medicine improved the knowledgeand skills of undergraduate medical students. The contents and various teaching methodologieswere evaluated positively.
