Intersectional Analysis of U.S. Medical Faculty Diversity over Four Decades.

The 2020 U.S. Census data show a rapidly diversifying U.S. population. We sought to evaluate whether clinical faculty and leadership representation at academic medical schools reflects the diversifying population over time. Using data from the Association of American Medical Colleges for the period of 1977 through 2019, we found notable progress in female representation among clinical faculty, with smaller gains among department chairs and medical school deans. Racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in medicine are designated as such because their presence within the medical profession is disproportionate to the U.S. Census data. Even with accounting for this underrepresentation, clinical faculty and leadership positions show even starker disparities. Thoughtful policy implementation could help address this persistent underrepresentation among medical school faculty and leadership positions.

What Changed? Variables Associated With the General Surgery Match.

INTRODUCTION: Between 1994 and 2014, despite an increase in applicants, successful matches into general surgery (GS) decreased by 13%. We aim to (1) understand the trends in competitiveness for a GS residency, and ascertain the associations between (2) geographical distribution and (3) research experiences on matching. METHODS: National Resident Matching Program data (2013-2022) were analyzed for (1) annual positions and matches, (2) United States Medical Licensing Examination scores, and (3) research experiences. Geographical locations of general surgery residency programs (GSRPs) for matched US seniors were obtained from medical school websites and through contacting institutions. Distances between medical schools and respective matches were assessed for the proportion of students matching within 100 miles, in the same state or same region, or in a different geographical region than their medical school. RESULTS: Of 28,690 applicants, 15,242 (53.12%) matched into a GS residency. Matched GS applicants had higher United States Medical Licensing Examination scores compared to applicants who matched in Emergency Medicine and Family Medicine (P < 0.001). US Medical Doctor (MD) match rates into GS were lower compared to Neurosurgery (P < 0.01), possibly due to competition from non-US MD applicants within GS. More applicants matched into GSRPs in the same region as their medical school, with 14% matching into home programs or within the same state as their medical school. CONCLUSIONS: Higher board examination scores and research participation are associated with successful matches. GS competition from non-US MDs may be driving the match rates for US MDs lower. More than half of students matched into GSRPs in the same region as their medical school.

A Qualitative Study Defining Perspectives on Rurality and Surgery From Midwestern Medical Schools.

INTRODUCTION: Rural general surgery faces a crisis as more surgeons undergo fellowship training and then practice in metropolitan areas, leaving rural Americans with decreasing surgical care. This study aims to identify how hometown rurality affects medical students' current level of knowledge and potential educational gaps within their understanding of the definition, benefits, and challenges of rural general surgery to define the need for enhanced education within medical schools. METHODS: In Spring 2021, 11 Midwestern medical schools participated in an electronic survey. Participants were divided into three groups (rural, urban, or suburban) based on their hometown rurality using Rural-Urban Continuum Codes. Qualitative analysis was performed for three questions addressing the definition, benefits, and challenges of rural surgery. RESULTS: Responses were analyzed from 411 students whose hometowns were representative of 33 states. The majority of respondents were female (n = 260; 63.4%) and Caucasian (n = 230; 56.9%) from self-reported suburban backgrounds who grew up and remained in the Midwest for their education. Major themes identified across all students were defining rural surgery as "Rural"/"Farmland"/"Nowhere" and specified the challenges of rural surgery to be relating to funding, facilities, and/or technology. Benefits identified were breadth of surgical procedures and community engagement. CONCLUSIONS: Most students do not understand the concept of rurality by definition or Rural-Urban Continuum Codes. However, students were able to identify a broad range of challenges and benefits faced by rural surgeons today. This provides a foundational needs assessment to drive future educational efforts to increase exposure to and knowledge of rural general surgery.

From admissions to licensure: education data associations from a multi-centre undergraduate medical education collaboration.

This paper reports the findings of a Canada based multi-institutional study designed to investigate the relationships between admissions criteria, in-program assessments, and performance on licensing exams. The study's objective is to provide valuable insights for improving educational practices across different institutions. Data were gathered from six medical schools: McMaster University, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine University, Queen's University, University of Ottawa, University of Toronto, and Western University. The dataset includes graduates who undertook the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination Part 1 (MCCQE1) between 2015 and 2017. The data were categorized into five distinct sections: demographic information as well as four matrices: admissions, course performance, objective structured clinical examination (OSCE), and clerkship performance. Common and unique variables were identified through an extensive consensus-building process. Hierarchical linear regression and a manual stepwise variable selection approach were used for analysis. Analyses were performed on data set encompassing graduates of all six medical schools as well as on individual data sets from each school. For the combined data set the final model estimated 32% of the variance in performance on licensing exams, highlighting variables such as Age at Admission, Sex, Biomedical Knowledge, the first post-clerkship OSCE, and a clerkship theta score. Individual school analysis explained 41-60% of the variance in MCCQE1 outcomes, with comparable variables to the analysis from of the combined data set identified as significant independent variables. Therefore, strongly emphasising the need for variety of high-quality assessment on the educational continuum. This study underscores the importance of sharing data to enable educational insights. This study also had its challenges when it came to the access and aggregation of data. As such we advocate for the establishment of a common framework for multi-institutional educational research, facilitating studies and evaluations across diverse institutions. This study demonstrates the scientific potential of collaborative data analysis in enhancing educational outcomes. It offers a deeper understanding of the factors influencing performance on licensure exams and emphasizes the need for addressing data gaps to advance multi-institutional research for educational improvements.

Motherhood penalty for female physicians in Japan: evidence from a medical school's alumni data.

BACKGROUND: Female physicians with children often work fewer hours and take fewer shifts due to additional family responsibilities. This can contribute to a gender pay gap in the medical profession. However, limited research in Japan has quantitatively examined the factors contributing to this gap. This study aims to address this gap in the literature. METHODS: We analyzed the alumni data from a medical school in Hokkaido, Japan, for 260 physicians (198 males and 62 females). We used multivariable regression models to identify factors influencing earnings from medical practice, with a focus on gender, work schedules, parenthood, and any career interruptions related to childcare. RESULTS: Our analysis revealed a 25.0% earnings gap between male and female physicians. Nearly all female physicians with children experienced career interruptions due to childcare, while this was uncommon for male physicians. When these childcare-related interruptions were factored in, the gender pay gap narrowed by 9.7%. After adjusting for work schedules and specialty choices, female physicians with children still earned 37.2% less than male physicians, while those without children earned only 4.4% less. This suggests that motherhood is a significant driver of the gender pay gap among physicians. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the negative impact of motherhood on female physicians' earnings. This emphasizes the need for policy measures to mitigate the disadvantages faced by mothers in the medical profession.

Relationship between otolaryngology interest groups and residency match results.

BACKGROUND: Many students have limited exposure to otolaryngology-head and neck surgery (OTOHNS) throughout medical school, limiting recruitment of medical students early in their medical careers. OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between otolaryngology interest groups (OIGs) at medical schools and percentage of students matching into OTOHNS residency programs. To characterize specific aspects of OIGs that may impact the percentage of students matching into OTOHNS residency programs from a given medical school. METHODS: Data was obtained from web searches of 141 accredited U.S. allopathic medical schools to see if they possessed OIGs. Information on the various activities and opportunities that OIGs participated in was collected through medical school websites. 2020 NRMP® match results data were obtained. RESULTS: Web searches found that 73 % (103 out of 141) of U.S. allopathic medical schools have OIGs. Medical schools with OIGs were associated with a 35 % increase in the median percentage of OTOHNS matches (P = 0.022). Of the 103 medical schools with OIGs, 53 % (55) of the schools had information on their websites describing activities and opportunities that their OIGs participate in. OIGs with research and/or mentorship opportunities were associated with increases in OTOHNS matches by 32 % (P = 0.043) and 83 % (P = 0.012), respectively. CONCLUSION: The presence of an OIG at a medical school is associated with an increased percentage of students matching into OTOHNS from that medical school. OIGs that provide research or mentorship opportunities are associated with an increased percentage of students matching into OTOHNS from those medical schools.

Sex-based Disparities Among Surgical Faculty Positions Across Medical Colleges in Pakistan.

INTRODUCTION: Despite women being under-represented in academic surgery, there is no publicly accessible repository describing the distribution of surgeons by sex and specialty in Pakistan. This short report aims to fulfill this gap by describing female representation across surgical faculty positions in medical colleges across Pakistan. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2021 across medical universities in Pakistan. A dual mode of data collection was employed, whereby data regarding sex, academic designation, and subspecialty of surgical faculty was retrieved via emails to representative faculty from medical colleges, and from medical colleges' websites. RESULTS: A total of 97/114 (85.1%) medical colleges across Pakistan were included, providing us with data of 2070 surgical faculty. Overall, only 10.3% of surgical faculty were women, with women comprising 14.1% of assistant professors, 9.3% of associate professors, and only 5.7% of professors. Most women surgical faculty were assistant professors (63.1%), with only 17.8% being professors. Sindh (14.3%) and Punjab (9.7%) had the greatest percentage of women across surgical faculty overall, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had the lowest (6.5%). Apart from breast surgery (100%), pediatric surgery (29.4%), ophthalmology (15.0%) and general surgery (11.6%), women did not represent more than 10% of surgical faculty for any surgical subspecialty. CONCLUSION: In Pakistan, there is a blatant lack of female representation across all faculty positions and in most surgical specialties, with imbalances more pronounced in the relatively under-developed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. These sex disparities may aggravate the surgical disease burden and adversely impact surgical prospects for women across the country.

A national analysis of the medical schools of training for merit award-winning laboratory medical doctors working in Britain.

AIMS: To inform the discussion regarding the origins of Laboratory Medical Consultant clinical merit award holders (LMC) whether the awards came from the Clinical Excellence Awards (CEA) or Distinction Awards (DA) schemes. METHODS: Setting - CEA is a scheme to financially reward senior doctors in England and Wales who are assessed to be working over and above the standard expected of their role. The DA scheme is the parallel and equivalent scheme in Scotland. Participants - All of the merit award holders in the 2019 round. Design - This involved a secondary analysis of the complete 2019 published dataset of award winners. Statistical analyses were performed with Chi-square tests set at p < 0.05 level for statistical significance. RESULTS: The top five medical schools (London University, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Oxford) were responsible for 68.4% of the LMC merit award holders in the 2019 round. 97.9% of the LMC merit award holders were from European medical schools, whereas 90.9% of the non-LMC award holders were from European medical schools. The LMCs with A plus or platinum awards came from only six medical schools: Aberdeen, Edinburgh, London University, Oxford, Sheffield and Southampton. In contrast, the B or silver/bronze LMC award holders came from a more diverse background of 13 medical schools. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of LMC merit award holders originated from only five university medical schools. All the LMCs with A plus or platinum awards came from only six university medical schools. There is an apparent overrepresentation of a small number of medical schools of origin amongst those LMCs that hold national merit awards.

Ophthalmology Departments Remain Among the Least Diverse Clinical Departments at United States Medical Schools.

PURPOSE: The current demographics of the ophthalmology workforce do not reflect the diverse United States population, which has implications for addressing health disparities. The demographics of ophthalmology department faculty may influence the recruitment of underrepresented students into the field. This study sought to determine how the racial and ethnic demographics of ophthalmology department faculty compare with those of other clinical departments at United States medical schools. DESIGN: Secondary data analysis of medical school faculty demographic data from the 2019 American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) Faculty Roster. PARTICIPANTS: Clinical faculty and department chairs at United States medical schools. METHODS: We analyzed the racial and ethnic demographics of clinical department faculty and department chairpersons using data from the 2019 AAMC Faculty Roster. We calculated the proportion of underrepresented minority (URM) faculty in ophthalmology and in 17 other clinical departments. We analyzed these data for statistically significant differences between ophthalmology and other clinical departments. In addition, we compared the percentage of URM ophthalmology faculty with the proportion of URM persons among graduating United States medical students and in the United States population using data from the Medical School Graduation Questionnaire and the United States census, respectively. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The proportion of URM persons, defined as Black, Hispanic or Latino, Native American, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander among clinical faculty and department chairs. RESULTS: Ophthalmology faculty are less racially and ethnically diverse than graduating medical students and the general United States population. When compared with 17 other clinical departments, ophthalmology has the third-lowest proportion of URM faculty, with only radiology and orthopedic surgery having a smaller proportion of URM faculty. These differences were statistically significant in most departments (12 of 18). No statistically significant difference was found in the proportion of URM department chairs in ophthalmology compared with most other clinical departments, although the absolute number of URM chairs in ophthalmology is low at only 8 chairpersons. CONCLUSIONS: More work must be done to increase the recruitment of URM physicians into ophthalmology faculty positions to obtain parity with other clinical departments and with the diverse patient populations that physicians serve.

Career Research Productivity Correlates With Medical School Ranking Among Cardiothoracic Surgeons.

BACKGROUND: The foundation for a successful academic surgical career begins in medical school. We examined whether attending a top-ranked medical school is correlated with enhanced research productivity and faster career advancement among academic cardiothoracic (CT) surgeons. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Research profiles and professional histories were obtained from publicly available sources for all CT surgery faculty at accredited US CT surgery teaching hospitals in 2018 (n = 992). We focused on surgeons who completed medical school in the United States during or after 1990, the first-year US News & World Report released its annual medical school research rankings (n = 451). Subanalyses focused on surgeons who completed a research fellowship (n = 299) and those who did not (n = 152). RESULTS: A total of 124 surgeons (27.5%) attended a US News & World Report top 10 medical school, whereas 327 (72.5%) did not. Surgeons who studied at a top 10 medical school published more articles per year as an attending surgeon (3.2 versus 1.9; P < 0.0001), leading to more total publications (51.5 versus 27.0; P < 0.0001) and a higher H-index (16.0 versus 11.0; P < 0.0001) over a similar career duration (11.0 versus 10.0 y; P = 0.1294). These differences in career-long research productivity were statistically significant regardless of whether the surgeons completed a research fellowship or not. The surgeons in both groups, however, required a similar number of years to reach associate professor rank (P = 0.6993) and full professor rank (P = 0.7811) after starting their first attending job. CONCLUSIONS: Attending a top-ranked medical school is associated with enhanced future research productivity but not with faster career advancement in academic CT surgery.

The Influence of an Acting or Subintern on Third-Year Medical School Surgery Clerkship Students.

BACKGROUND: Previous reports demonstrated a positive relationship between the surgical clerkship and student likelihood of pursuing a surgical career, but no studies have examined the influence a peer has on comfort during a surgical clerkship. We hypothesized that a fourth-year acting intern (AI) would positively impact third-year medical students' experience during their surgical clerkship. METHODS: All third-year medical students at our institution who completed their surgical clerkship in 2019 were surveyed regarding the preclerkship and postclerkship perceptions. RESULTS: Of the 110 students surveyed, 52 responded (47.3% response rate), and 25 students (48.1%) reported having an AI during their clerkship rotation, and 27 did not (51.9%). Presence of an AI had no significant effect on the postclerkship perception of surgery, likelihood of pursuing general surgery, or comfort in the OR. Analysis of all responses demonstrated the surgery clerkship had no significant impact on students' perception of surgery or likelihood of pursuing general surgery but did statistically increase students' comfort in the OR. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that AI presence did not significantly influence a student's clerkship experience or comfort in the OR. Further studies are needed to determine what, if any effect, an AI could have on third-year clerkship students.

The Calm Before The Storm: The 4th Year of Medical School prior to a Surgery Residency.

Many medical students figure that their fourth year of medical school should be a time primarily focused on residency interviews and resting up for residency. While the interview part is necessary, the concept that one should be resting during that year is a myth. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Your top priority should be to prepare yourself to hit the ground running as a great surgical intern.

Underrepresented Minorities in Surgical Residencies: Where are They? A Call to Action to Increase the Pipeline.

OBJECTIVE: To describe and evaluate trends of general surgery residency applicants, matriculants, and graduates over the last 13 years. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: The application and matriculation rates of URMs to medical school has remained unchanged over the last three decades with Blacks and Hispanics representing 7.1% and 6.3% of matriculants, respectively. With each succession along the surgical career pathway, from medical school to residency to a faculty position, the percentage of URMs decreases. METHODS: The Electronic Residency Application Service to General Surgery Residency and the Graduate Medical Education Survey of residents completing general surgery residency were retrospectively analyzed (2005-2018). Data were stratified by race, descriptive statistics were performed, and time series were charted. RESULTS: From 2005 to 2018, there were 71,687 Electronic Residency Application Service applicants to general surgery residencies, 26,237 first year matriculants, and 24,893 general surgery residency graduates. Whites followed by Asians represented the highest percentage of applicants (n = 31,197, 43.5% and n = 16,602, 23%), matriculants (n = 16,395, 62.5% and n = 4768, 18.2%), and graduates (n = 15,239, 61% and n = 4804, 19%). For URMs, the applicants (n = 8603, 12%, P < 0.00001), matriculants (n = 2420, 9.2%, P = 0.0158), and graduates (n = 2508, 10%, P = 0.906) remained significantly low and unchanged, respectively, whereas the attrition was significantly higher (3.6%, P = 0.049) when compared to Whites (2.6%) and Asians (2.9%). CONCLUSION: Significant disparities in the application, matriculation, graduation, and attrition rates for general surgery residency exists for URMs. A call to action is needed to re-examine and improve existing recommendations/paradigms to increase the number of URMs in the surgery training pipeline.

How many and which physicians? A comparative study of the evolution of the supply of physicians and specialist training in Brazil and Spain.

BACKGROUND: In the face of the medical workforce shortage, several countries have promoted the opening of medical schools and the expansion of undergraduate and specialization education in medicine. Few studies have compared the characteristics and effects of expanding the supply of general practitioners and specialist physicians between countries. Brazil and Spain, two countries with distinct historical processes and socioeconomic scenarios, yet both with universal public health systems and common aspects in training and medical work, have registered a significant increase in the number of physicians and can be used to understand the challenges of strategic planning for the medical workforce. METHODS: This study provides a descriptive approach using longitudinal data from official databases in Brazil and Spain from 1998 to 2017. Among the comparable indicators, the absolute numbers of physicians, the population size, and the physician's ratio by inhabitants were used. The number of medical schools and undergraduate places in public and private institutions, the supply of residency training posts, and the number of medical specialists and medical residents per 100 000 inhabitants were also used to compare both countries. Seventeen medical specialties with the highest number of specialists and comparability between the two countries were selected for further comparison. RESULTS: Due to the opening of medical schools, the density of physicians per 1 000 inhabitants grew by 28% in Spain and 51% in Brazil between 1998 and 2017. In that period, Spain and Brazil increased the supply of annual undergraduate places by 60% and 137%, respectively. There is a predominance of private institutions providing available undergraduate places, and the supply of medical residency posts is smaller than the contingent of medical graduates/general practitioners each year. CONCLUSION: Both countries have similar specialist densities in cardiology, dermatology, and neurosurgery specialties. However, family medicine and community in Spain has 91.27 specialists per 100 000 inhabitants, while in Brazil, the density is only 2.64. The comparative study indicated the complexity of the countries' decisions on increasing the medical supply of general practitioners and specialist physicians. Research and planning policies on the medical workforce must be aligned with the actual health needs of populations and health systems.

Education and training in public health: is there progress in the European region?

BACKGROUND: The Association of Schools of Public Health in the European Region (ASPHER) is confronted with challenges to improve education for public health professionals. In this article, we attempt to answer the question: Did ASPHER members improve their organization and programmes to enable their graduates to acquire the competences to tackle the diverse areas of public health defined in the Ten Essential Public Health Operations (EPHOs)? METHODS: ASPHER run two surveys among its membership: In 2011, 66 Schools and Departments of Public Health (SDPHs) took part (82.5%), while in 2015-16, 78 SDPHs (81.3%). The performance of graduates was estimated using a Likert scale. RESULTS: In 2015-16, the SDPHs delivered 169 academic programmes (2.2 on average per SDPH). Among the SDPHs participating in both surveys, significant differences could not be determined, neither for the organization (except increasingly using social media) nor for teaching areas. The performance of graduates did not show significant differences except for the deterioration of EPHO-8 ('assuring sustainable organizational structures and financing'). However, the qualitative data revealed progressive dynamics regarding innovations in the organizational set-up, digitalization, teaching/training, introduction of new modules and research. CONCLUSIONS: The results generated do not allow us to state that the innovative elements introduced after the first survey in 2011 have had a clear impact reflected in the second survey carried out in 2015-16, but perhaps this is due to the need for a broader follow-up in order to objectify the potential consequences derived from the boost generated by the changes introduced.

Salary Disparities in Academic Urogynecology: Despite Increased Transparency, Men Still Earn More Than Women.

OBJECTIVE: To understand the compensation differences between male and female academic urogynecologists at public institutions. METHODS: Urogynecologists at public universities with publicly available salary data as of June 2019 were eligible for the study. We collected characteristics, including sex, additional advanced degrees, years of training, board certification, leadership roles, number of authored scientific publications, and total National Institutes of Health funding projects and number of registered clinical trials for which the physician was a principal or co-investigator. We also collected total number of Medicare beneficiaries treated and total Medicare reimbursement as reported by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. We used linear regression to adjust for potential confounders. RESULTS: We identified 85 academic urogynecologists at 29 public state academic institutions with available salary data eligible for inclusion in the study. Males were more likely to be an associate or a full professor (81%) compared with females (55%) and were more likely to serve as department chair, vice chair, or division director (59%) compared with females (30%). The mean annual salary was significantly higher among males ($323,227 ± $97,338) than females ($268,990 ± $72,311, P = 0.004). After adjusting for academic rank and leadership roles and years since residency, the discrepancy persisted, with females compensated on average $37,955 less annually. CONCLUSIONS: Salaries are higher for male urogynecologists than female urogynecologists, even when accounting for variables such as academic rank and leadership roles. Physician compensation is complex; the differences observed may be due to variables that are not captured in this study. Nevertheless, the magnitude of disparity found in our study warrants further critical assessment of potential biases within the field.

Current trends and future perspectives for medical education in Colombia.

Colombia is the second largest country in South America. In this article, we provide an overview of medical education in Colombia, including a description of existing public and private medical schools and available undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Medical education in Colombia has evolved through time, following international trends. In addition to 61 undergraduate medical programs, there are 529 postgraduate clinical, 30 PhD, and 131 Master programs in health sciences in Colombia. We identify current challenges and highlight future perspectives for medical education in Colombia.

Low priority of obesity education leads to lack of medical students' preparedness to effectively treat patients with obesity: results from the U.S. medical school obesity education curriculum benchmark study.

BACKGROUND: Physicians are currently unprepared to treat patients with obesity, which is of great concern given the obesity epidemic in the United States. This study sought to evaluate the current status of obesity education among U.S. medical schools, benchmarking the degree to which medical school curricula address competencies proposed by the Obesity Medicine Education Collaborative (OMEC). METHODS: Invitations to complete an online survey were sent via postal mail to 141 U.S. medical schools compiled from Association of American Medical Colleges. Medical school deans and curriculum staff knowledgeable about their medical school curriculum completed online surveys in the summer of 2018. Descriptive analyses were performed. RESULTS: Forty of 141 medical schools responded (28.4%) and completed the survey. Only 10.0% of respondents believe their students were "very prepared" to manage patients with obesity and one-third reported that their medical school had no obesity education program in place and no plans to develop one. Half of the medical schools surveyed reported that expanding obesity education was a low priority or not a priority. An average of 10 h was reported as dedicated to obesity education, but less than 40% of schools reported that any obesity-related topic was well covered (i.e., to a "great extent"). Medical students received an adequate education (defined as covered to at least "some extent") on the topics of biology, physiology, epidemiology of obesity, obesity-related comorbidities, and evidence-based behavior change models to assess patient readiness for counseling (range: 79.5 to 94.9%). However, in approximately 30% of the schools surveyed, there was little or no education in nutrition and behavioral obesity interventions, on appropriate communication with patients with obesity, or pharmacotherapy. Lack of room in the curriculum was reported as the greatest barrier to incorporating obesity education. CONCLUSIONS: Currently, U.S. medical schools are not adequately preparing their students to manage patients with obesity. Despite the obesity epidemic and high cost burden, medical schools are not prioritizing obesity in their curricula.

Stereoscopic three-dimensional visualization: interest for neuroanatomy teaching in medical school.

PURPOSE: The anatomy of both the brain and the skull is particularly difficult to learn and to teach. Since their anatomical structures are numerous and gathered in a complex tridimensional (3D) architecture, classic schematical drawing or photography in two dimensions (2D) has difficulties in providing a clear, simple, and accurate message. Advances in photography and computer sciences have led to develop stereoscopic 3D visualization, firstly for entertainment then for education. In the present study, we report our experience of stereoscopic 3D lecture for neuroanatomy teaching to early medical school students. METHODS: High-resolution specific pictures were taken on various specimen dissections in the Anatomy Laboratory of the University of Lyon, France. Selected stereoscopic 3D views were displayed on a large dedicated screen using a doubled video projector. A 2-h stereoscopic neuroanatomy lecture was given by two neuroanatomists to third-year medicine students who wore passive 3D glasses. Setting up lasted 30 min and involved four people. The feedback from students was collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Among the 483 students who have attended the stereoscopic 3D lecture, 195 gave feedback, and all (100%) were satisfied. Among these, 190 (97.5%) reported a better knowledge transfer of brain anatomy and its 3D architecture. Furthermore, 167 (86.1%) students felt it could change their further clinical practice, 179 (91.8%) thought it could enhance their results in forthcoming anatomy examinations, and 150 (76.9%) believed such a 3D lecture might allow them to become better physicians. This 3D anatomy lecture was graded 8.9/10 a mean against 5.9/10 for previous classical 2D lectures. DISCUSSION-CONCLUSION: The stereoscopic 3D teaching of neuroanatomy made medical students enthusiastic involving digital technologies. It could improve their anatomical knowledge and test scores, as well as their clinical competences. Depending on university means and the commitment of teachers, this new tool should be extended to other anatomical fields. However, its setting up requires resources from faculties and its impact on clinical competencies needs to be objectively assessed.

Determinants of depression among undergraduate medical students of a private medical college in Lahore.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the prevalence and determinants of depression in undergraduate medical students within their learning environment. METHODS: The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at the Lahore Medical and Dental College, Lahore, Pakistan, from May to June 2015, and comprised medical students of all the five professional years. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Section one of the questionnaire related to demographic information, section two comprised Patient health questionnaire-9 for screening depression, and section three was the Dundee ready education environment measure inventory to gather students' perceptions of their learning environment. Data was analysed using SPSS 22. RESULTS: Of the 533 students, 206(39%) were males, 327(61%) were females, 213(40%) were of preclinical years and 320(60%) were of clinical academic years. Overall, 399(75%) students were found to be depressed. Of them, 255(64%) were females and 144(36%) were males. Among the students, 96(18%) had negative perception of their learning environment, and out of these, 91(95%) were found to be depressed. There was significant association of depression with female gender (p=0.037) and negative perception of the students of their learning climate (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of depression was found to be high among the medical students and it was associated with female gender and negative perception of the learning environment.