Successful Academic Remediation of Undergraduate Medical Students for Exit Examination: Lessons Learned

ABSTRACT

@#Introduction: To ensure that they will be the safe health-care providers, the medical schools must guarantee that their students meet the predetermined criteria before graduating. To fulfil this condition, usually a small proportion of students, need remedial training before they could graduate. In October 2018 we designed an academic remediation programme for 24 students who were to re-appear in their Final Professional MBBS Examination (FPE) in March/ April 2019. Aim of the remediation programme was not only to help the students to pass the examination but also to train them as safe future doctors. Methods: A rotational programme was drawn to cover all the relevant disciplines. A number of well-planned interventions were applied. A clinical examination in various combinations of a long case, short cases and OSCE stations was conducted at the end of each rotation and the written examination was conducted after completing the full 24 weeks of the programme before they sat in the FPE. Results: The five most useful interventions identified in the students’ feedback included “Patient to book approach”; Mentoring; Group study; Mock examinations and Flipped class-rooms. Eighteen of the 24 (75%) students passed the FPE. The five of the six students failed because of the poor performance in the clinical examination. Conclusion: Remedial interventions can be successful by having clear goals and directions. Individualized approach in identifying and addressing the issues and by seeking help from the relevant professionals ensures the success.