Does how much a resident teaches impact performance? A comparison of preclinical teaching hours to pathology residents' in-service examination scores.

BACKGROUND: While others have studied the effects of resident teaching on medical student performance, few have examined the benefits to the resident educator. Our study compared the quantity of pathology residents' didactic teaching with their performance on in-service examinations. METHODS: The academic records of anatomic/clinical pathology residents over 10 years were reviewed. Scores on step I of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE(®)), the annual percentile on the in-service examination, and preclinical teaching hours for each resident were obtained. RESULTS: Average annual teaching hours showed a weak positive correlation with mean in-service examination performance. Those below the 50th percentile had a lower number of teaching hours (average 7.8) than above the 50th percentile (mean 10.4, P=0.01). The incremental positive association between the two metrics increased by year in training and was strongest among senior residents, even controlling for USMLE performance (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: There is an association between the amount of pathology residents' preclinical educational activity and their mean performance on in-service examinations.

The eAutopsy: an effective virtual tool for exposing medical students to the postmortem examination.

OBJECTIVES: One reason for declining autopsy numbers is clinicians' lack of familiarity with the practice. We developed an online tool used in place of attending postmortem examinations and aimed to determine if the experience was as effective in affecting medical students' attitudes toward the procedure. METHODS: The eAutopsy was a part of a unit consisting of a mixture of a didactic lecture, readings, and online discussion board. A class of second-year medical students was randomly distributed between autopsy attendance and the eAutopsy, afterward completing a Likert-type attitudinal survey. Responses were compared with previous students receiving only a lecture. RESULTS: Thirty students attended a "live" autopsy, 90 completed the eAutopsy, and 47 students from the prior year completed the survey. Responses between all three were statistically similar for all but one item. The live and eAutopsy groups would be significantly more comfortable asking for an autopsy in the future. Narrative responses indicated that while the eAutopsy was effective in delivering information, some noticed the lack of emotional impact. CONCLUSIONS: The two forms of autopsy exposure performed similarly on a Likert-type survey assessing certain attitudes related to the procedure. However, the emotional impact of the live experience may be longer lasting.

Interactive case vignettes utilizing simulated pathologist-clinician encounters with whole slide imaging and video tutorials of whole slide scans improves student understanding of disease processes.

BACKGROUND: One of the drawbacks of studying pathology in the second year of medical school in a classroom setting is the relatively limited exposure to patient encounters/clinical rotations, making it difficult to understand and fully appreciate the significance of the course material, specifically the molecular and tissue aspects of disease. In this study, we determined if case vignettes incorporating pathologist-clinician encounters with whole slide imaging (WSI) and narrated/annotated videos of whole slide (WS) scans in addition to clinical data improved student understanding of pathologic disease processes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Case vignettes were created for several genitourinary disease processes that utilized clinical data including narratives of pathologist-clinician encounters, WSI, and annotated video tutorials of WS scans (designed to simulate "double-heading"). The students were encouraged to view the virtual slide first, with the video tutorials being provided to offer additional assistance. The case vignettes were created to be interactive with a detailed explanation of each correct and incorrect question choice. The cases were made available to all second year medical students via a website and could be viewed only after completing a 10 question pre-test. A post-test could be completed after viewing all cases followed by a brief satisfaction survey. RESULTS: Ninety-six students completed the pre-test with an average score of 7.7/10. Fifty-seven students completed the post-test with an average score of 9.4/10. Thirty-six students completed the satisfaction survey. 94% agreed or strongly agreed that this was a useful exercise and 91% felt that it helped them better understand the topics. CONCLUSION: The development of interactive case vignettes incorporating simulated pathologist-clinician encounters with WSI and video tutorials of WS scans helps to improve student enthusiasm to learn and grasp pathologic aspects of disease processes that lead to clinical therapeutic decision making.