Assessment of first-year medical students' perceptions of teaching and learning through team-based learning sessions.

Team-based learning (TBL) is an emerging teaching and learning strategy being employed in medical schools. The College of Medicine at Alfaisal University has adopted a TBL approach as an instructional method for first-year medical students. The aim of the present study was to describe the TBL method employed at Alfaisal University College of Medicine and to assess first-year medical students' perceptions of this learning modality for the anatomy- and physiology-based blocks/courses in organ systems form of curriculum. A five-point Likert scale questionnaire was structured based on Kirkpatrick's theory and assessed three major domains: reaction, learning, and behavior. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Cronbach's α-coefficient tests were used to assess the validity and reliability of the construct, respectively. CFA showed an adequate validity of the survey and Cronbach's α revealed an acceptable internal uniformity (0.69). A total of 185 respondents rated reaction, learning, and behavior toward introduction of TBL as 3.53 ± 1.01, 3.59 ± 1.12, and 3.57 ± 1.12, respectively. Excellent students rated TBL highly in all major domains compared with borderline students (reaction, behavior, and learning domains with P values of <0.049, <0.035, and <0.031, respectively). Students who had prior teamwork experience rated TBL higher in terms of their learning experience compared with those who were rarely involved in team work. This study demonstrated that Alfaisal University first-year medical students perceived TBL positively as a teaching and learning strategy for functional anatomy, and prior involvement in teamwork and academic performance correlates with higher ratings of TBL.

Research-oriented series: a portal into the culture of biomedical research for junior medical students at Alfaisal University in Saudi Arabia.

Student contributions to research have been shown to effectively reflect on their communication and critical thinking skills. Short-term research courses offer opportunities for medical students to advance their research experience in subsequent high-demanding long-term research opportunities. The purpose of the present study was to describe the development, implementation, and evaluation of a research-oriented series (ROS) on undergraduate students at Alfaisal University in Saudi Arabia. The ROS was designed to comprise eight sessions. Each session addressed core principles and the practice of research concepts and was based on theoretical morning sessions supplemented by afternoon practical sessions delivered by experienced senior medical students and faculty members. Students were assessed comprehensively by the end of the ROS. The series was conducted twice, and 35 students were involved each time. A total of 70 enrolled students (35 men and 35 women) with grade point averages of >3.5 and <3.5 were asked to fill out an anonymous, online, self-administered questionnaire assessing their perception of knowledge, skills, and confidence after attending the ROS and evaluating their senior peers. Ninety percent of the medical students responded to the online survey and rated the ROS highly in improving their research knowledge, skills, and confidence. Male students reported significant gains compared with their female peers (P<0.05). Grade point averages did not play a role in student gains after attending the ROS. Qualitative responses were in support of three recurring themes favoring the unique learning environment in the ROS. In conclusion, the ROS offers a short-term systematic approach to fundamental steps and concepts of biomedical research.

Undergraduate research: an innovative student-centered committee from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

INTRODUCTION: Concern has been expressed in recent times whether medical schools have adapted sufficiently to cater for the increasing demand of physician-scientists. Studies have shown that research involvement at the undergraduate level is vital to accommodate this growing need. Enhanced communication skills, improved problem-solving abilities and better future employment opportunities are among the other many benefits of undergraduate research (UR). Herein, we report projects run by a unique student driven undergraduate research committee (URC) at Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia aimed at providing the future generation of physicians training opportunities for pursuing a research intensive career. METHODS: The article describes the unique structure of the URC and provides an in-depth description of the various programs and activities used in promoting students' research activities. We analyzed students' perception of URC activities via a questionnaire and analyzed research-output of the first graduating batches through their publication record. RESULTS: Overall, more than 60% of the graduating students were involved in the various research programs offered by the URC and around 50% published in peer-reviewed journals with an average impact factor of 2.4. CONCLUSIONS: Research involvement by medical students is an essential need of the twenty-first century and models like URC could provide crucial platform for research training to the new generation of physician-scientists.

Self-reported breast feeding practices and the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a practice guideline for healthcare providers to promote breastfeeding and increase breastfeeding rates. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine reported experiences and views on breastfeeding of women using prenatal and postnatal services, and opinions of staff, in the context of the BFHI programme in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: This prospective, longitudinal study was conducted from December 2013 to September 2015 at two healthcare facilities (BFHI and non-BFHI) in Riyadh Saudi Arabia. METHODS: Women 36-40 weeks gestation receiving antenatal care at the hospitals were enrolled. Questionnaires were administered prenatally, at 1, 3 and 6 months postnatal and to the administrator and maternity staff. RESULTS: We recruited 277 women with an estimated 80% response rate. 156 (BFHI=78/139, non-BFHI=78/138, 56%) participants completed all questionnaires. Most BFHI-hospital participants (77.9%, n=8 for this question) acknowledged seeing the breast feeding policy compared to 23.5% (n=23) at the non-BFHI-hospital (p<0.01). Breast feeding education and encouragement was higher at the BFHI-hospital (93.3%) compared to the non-BFHI-hospital (48.2%; p<0.01). At postpartum discharge, 51% (n=53) of mothers in the BFHI-hospital were breast feeding exclusively versus 29.6% (n=29) at the non-BFHI-hospital. Where formula feed was introduced, women in the BFHI-hospital more often practiced mixed feeding rather than exclusive formula feeding with some switching from mixed feeding to exclusive breast feeding between 3 and 6 months postpartum. Exclusive breast feeding rates declined in both hospitals at 3 and 6 months postpartum with lack of community services for lactation being a major reason. Although BFHI-hospital staff (n=9) were more conversant with BFHI principles, defects in adherence to the BFHI 10 Steps were identified. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study assessing the effectiveness of BFHI implementation in Saudi Arabia. Although women reported increased breast feeding rates, we identified important weaknesses that could be improved through strict compliance with BFHI practices.

The Student-Authored Biomedical Publications at Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia: a 6-year descriptive analysis.

There are limited numbers of studies which comprehensively explored the research publications authored by medical students. To descriptively analyze the student-authored research publications originating from Alfaisal University-College of Medicine (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) over a 6-year period. All student-authored research publications were retrieved from PubMed(®) and the College's publication database. Study inclusion criteria included: (1) at least one medical student author, (2) published and/or accepted in-press PubMed-indexed article from 10 September 2008 to 31 December 2014. Data was transferred to Microsoft Excel Software for descriptive statistical analysis of variable parameters. Seventy-three (n = 73) articles met the study inclusion criteria. They were published by 170 students; the majority were males (79.4 %) and clerkship students (65.9 %). There was a markedly steady increase in number of yearly publications from 1 publication in 2009 to 35 publications by the end of 2014. Fifty (68.5 %), twenty-nine (39.7 %) and thirty-seven (50.7 %) students were first, second and corresponding authors, respectively. The most frequent research areas were clinical science (43.8 %), basic science (23.3 %) and medical education (21.9 %). The most frequent research types were case reports (41.1 %), research articles (32.9 %) and correspondence letters (15.1 %). Fifty-seven (78.1 %) and sixteen (21.9 %) publications took place in local and abroad institutes, respectively. Most publications (71.2 %) had impact factors below 2. The mean ± SD of articles' impact factors and citations were 3.9 ± 9.9 and 1.9 ± 4.1, respectively. Students demonstrated positive attitudes towards publishing and significantly contributed to the institution's pool of research publications.

Comparative analysis of quantity and quality of biomedical publications in Gulf Cooperation Council countries from 2011-2013.

OBJECTIVES:   To compare the research productivity of different Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in the field of biomedical sciences from 2011-2013.  METHODS: This is a retrospective study conducted in the College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Data on the biomedical publications originating from GCC countries published between January 2011 to December 2013 was searched via MEDLINE using PubMed. The total number of publications emanating from each country was normalized with the country's population. The mean impact factor (IF) of all the publications in a year was calculated for comparative analysis.  RESULTS: A total of 11,000 publications were retrieved via MEDLINE using PubMed, out of which, 9222 were selected for analysis. A successive increase in the number of publications by every country was observed. The most striking increase in the number of publications was from Saudi Arabia. However, after normalization with population, the performance of Oman, Qatar, and Kuwait looks far better than Saudi Arabia in terms of research productivity. Data on mean IF showed that the overall mean IF of all GCC countries has remained largely unchanged except Oman. Although Oman had a comparatively low mean IF value in 2011, they recorded a tremendous improvement in successive years.  CONCLUSION: All GCC countries underwent an increase in quantitative research productivity over the last 3 years. However, no increase in quality of research publications was noted based on the proxy reports of mean journal IF.