Flipping a biochemistry class within a medical curriculum: Impacts on perception, engagement, and attainment.

The flipped classroom has gained prominence in higher education, but little has been written about its application in the Middle East. This study aimed to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and impact of flipping biochemistry classes in comparison to the traditional didactic program. The study was conducted on first-year medical students taking biochemistry at a private University in Saudi Arabia. A series of short, pre-recorded videos were used to replace traditional lectures. The scheduled lecture time was used for problem solving and discussion sessions. To gather their evaluation of the learning approach, participants completed an online survey. To study the effect of the learning approach on exam performance, the scores of the participants were compared in questions taught using the flipped classroom versus the traditional didactic method. Participants noted that the effort needed for the course was similar regardless of the learning approach. Moreover, examination performance measured using single best answer multiple-choice questions showed no difference between the two teaching methods. However, the participants did report a significantly better perception of the flipped classroom compared to the traditional approach. Although no significant improvement in examination results was noted, the participants significantly favored the flipped classroom over traditional lectures. This study has demonstrated that the flipped classroom can be used in the teaching of the biosciences within a Middle Eastern setting, resulting in an improvement in student satisfaction and engagement in the course materials.

COVID-19 - the ultimate disruptor?

This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has influenced undergraduate medical education in various ways already. In affected countries, educators and their teams were faced with a rapidly changing situation that made traditional ways of curriculum delivery impossible and required alternative approaches. Exams have also been affected and a cohort of students has graduated early and now joins the workforce. There is also concern for the next academic year should the pandemic last longer. In this paper we aim to describe wider implications of the pandemic beyond current curriculum delivery, exams and planning. We describe how our own clinical and educational environment has been utterly transformed within weeks and speculate how much these changes will persist after the pandemic. We also describe student concerns and introduce the thought that the pandemic may have positive long term effects as well. Finally, we speculate how COVID-19 may affect student recruitment, multi-professional learning and the current and future undergraduates' view of the profession. Our aim is to share our experience in the UK, reflect on the direction and magnitude of change seen in our own local and regional practice, and provide food for thought for educators and their teams who find themselves in a similar situation.

Severity and threshold of peanut reactivity during hospital-based open oral food challenges: An international multicenter survey.

BACKGROUND: Peanut allergy is classically managed by food avoidance. Immunotherapy programs are available at some academic centers for selected patients reacting to small amounts of peanut during food challenge. We aimed to determine and compare reaction thresholds and prevalence of anaphylaxis during peanut oral challenges at multiple specialist allergy centers. METHODS: A retrospective, international survey of anonymized case records from seven specialist pediatric allergy centers from the UK and Ireland, as well as the Australian HealthNuts study. Demographic information, allergy test results, reaction severity and threshold during open oral peanut challenges were collated and analyzed. RESULTS: Of the 1634 children aged 1-18 years old included, 525 (32%) failed their peanut challenge. Twenty-eight percent reacted to 25 mg, while 38% only reacted after consuming 1 g or more of whole peanut. Anaphylaxis (55 [11%]) was 3 times more common in teenagers than younger children and the likelihood increased at all ages as children consuming more peanut at the challenge. Children who developed anaphylaxis to 25-200 mg of whole peanut were significantly older. Previous history of reaction did not predict reaction threshold or severity. CONCLUSIONS: More than a third of the children in this large international cohort tolerated the equivalent of one peanut in an oral challenge. Anaphylaxis, particularly to small amounts of peanut, was more common in older children. Tailored immunotherapy programs might be considered not only for children with low, but also higher reaction thresholds. Whether these programs could prevent heightened sensitivity and anaphylaxis to peanut with age also deserves further study.

How we developed eForms: an electronic form and data capture tool to support assessment in mobile medical education.

Mobile learning technologies are being introduced and adopted by an increasing number of medical schools. Following the implementation of these devices, institutions are tasked with the challenge of their integration into curriculum delivery and presented with the opportunity to facilitate data collection from large student cohorts. Since 2011, Manchester Medical School (MMS) has undertaken the largest deployment of iPads within UK Higher Education. Working towards the more efficient collation of students' compulsory workplace-based assessment data led us to evaluate how existing information management software could replace previously paper-based systems. Following an evaluation of six, and a trial of one, commercially available packages, the existing software solutions were found to be inflexible and unfit for purpose. This resulted in the development of a new digital solution that addressed the limitations of the previous system. "University of Manchester (UoM) eForms" consists of an app and a web-based administration system that respectively permit high volume data collection and management. UoM eForms has now replaced the preceding paper-based and electronic systems within MMS for workplace-based assessment administration, due to the improved usability and dynamicity built into its interface and infrastructure. This new system has found many further useful applications, including research data collection, feedback, placement evaluations, quality assurance and interview marking.

Attitudes to pre-employment competency screening.

BACKGROUND: Pre-employment competency screening (PECS) has been introduced in some regions in the UK for foundation applicants. There is no consensus on how the process should be run, and this has led to a variety of methods used between and within deaneries. This study aims to look at the acceptability and, in part, the educational impact of PECS in the North Western Foundation School. METHODS: An electronic survey was created and sent to all of the foundation applicants assigned to posts in the North Western Deanery. The survey covered attitudes to the PECS process and collected demographic details about their medical school of origin. Free-text comments were analysed for recurring themes by two of the investigators, and variances were discussed until common themes were agreed upon. RESULTS: The questionnaire was sent to 555 candidates with 265 replies. Foundation doctors saw the identification of educational needs, assessment of competency, making provision for support and patient safety as the main purposes of PECS. A majority of respondents felt that PECS was a fair assessment of competencies (90%), and that the process was valuable (80.4%). DISCUSSION: The results suggest that foundation doctors find the PECS process acceptable, and see it as an opportunity to identify educational needs and to be supported in weak areas. There are concerns about the validity of these assessments, and we have suggested recommendations for standardising PECS whilst acknowledging the need for further research.

Foundation observation of teaching project--a developmental model of peer observation of teaching.

INTRODUCTION: Peer observation of teaching is important in the development of educators. The foundation curriculum specifies teaching competencies that must be attained. We created a developmental model of peer observation of teaching to help our foundation doctors achieve these competencies and develop as educators. METHODS: A process for peer observation was created based on key features of faculty development. The project consisted of a pre-observation meeting, the observation, a post-observation debrief, writing of reflective reports and group feedback sessions. The project was evaluated by completion of questionnaires and focus groups held with both foundation doctors and the students they taught to achieve triangulation. RESULTS: Twenty-one foundation doctors took part. All completed reflective reports on their teaching. Participants described the process as useful in their development as educators, citing specific examples of changes to their teaching practice. Medical students rated the sessions as better or much better quality as their usual teaching. DISCUSSION: The study highlights the benefits of the project to individual foundation doctors, undergraduate medical students and faculty. It acknowledges potential anxieties involved in having teaching observed. CONCLUSION: A structured programme of observation of teaching can deliver specific teaching competencies required by foundation doctors and provides additional benefits.