Letter to the editors
Balancing act of undergraduate clinical teaching Rizwan Dewji, Dushyanth Gnanappiragasam and Abbas Dewji Imperial College School of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
W
e read the article by Behmanesh et al. with interest, and believe that it raises some important points in relation to the teaching of medical students.1 The article states that students ‘who took part in the out-patient clinic programme obtained better scores when compared with the students who exclusively attended the in-patient teaching programme’. Furthermore, the authors suggest that the findings re-define the importance of both out-patient and in-patient experiences in medical education. Whereas we are in agreement with the importance of outpatient experience and teaching, for the enhancement of clinical knowledge and skill bases for medical students, we also believe that the correct balance between out-patient and in-patient
experience needs to be achieved. Davis et al. concluded that students learned more in the out-patient environment; however, they also warned of some of the potential dangers of too large a shift towards outpatient teaching, with students gaining less exposure to medical emergencies and surgical complications.2 Furthermore, Vaughn et al. found that effective learning relies on the use of a ‘variety of teaching methods and styles’.3 Hence, it is essential that a balance in learning opportunities is provided to medical students. Given these findings, possible suggestions for future studies may include comparing performance in medical students who have been exposed to only out-patient clinics for a set attachment, with those who have
received a combination of in-patient and out-patient experience for the same attachment. This will further help to establish whether it is out-patient clinics, varied teaching and learning approaches, or a combination of the two that are responsible for the improved performance in medical students. REFERENCES 1.
Behmanesh F, Ahanchian H, Vakili R, Ahanchian N, Bagheri S. Teaching final-year medical students in a paediatric ambulatory care unit. Clin Teach 2014;11:361–364.
2.
Davis MH, Dent JA. Comparison of student learning in the out-patient clinic and ward round. Med Educ 1994;28:208–212.
3.
Vaughn L, Baker R. Teaching in the medical setting: balancing teaching styles, learning styles and teaching methods. Med Teach 2001;23:610–612.
Corresponding author’s contact details: Rizwan Dewji BSc (Hons), Imperial College School of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK. E-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1111/tct.12333
70 © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2015; 12: 70
tct_12333.indd 70
1/14/2015 3:47:05 PM
Balancing act of undergraduate clinical teaching Rizwan Dewji, Dushyanth Gnanappiragasam and Abbas Dewji Imperial College School of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
W
e read the article by Behmanesh et al. with interest, and believe that it raises some important points in relation to the teaching of medical students.1 The article states that students ‘who took part in the out-patient clinic programme obtained better scores when compared with the students who exclusively attended the in-patient teaching programme’. Furthermore, the authors suggest that the findings re-define the importance of both out-patient and in-patient experiences in medical education. Whereas we are in agreement with the importance of outpatient experience and teaching, for the enhancement of clinical knowledge and skill bases for medical students, we also believe that the correct balance between out-patient and in-patient
experience needs to be achieved. Davis et al. concluded that students learned more in the out-patient environment; however, they also warned of some of the potential dangers of too large a shift towards outpatient teaching, with students gaining less exposure to medical emergencies and surgical complications.2 Furthermore, Vaughn et al. found that effective learning relies on the use of a ‘variety of teaching methods and styles’.3 Hence, it is essential that a balance in learning opportunities is provided to medical students. Given these findings, possible suggestions for future studies may include comparing performance in medical students who have been exposed to only out-patient clinics for a set attachment, with those who have
received a combination of in-patient and out-patient experience for the same attachment. This will further help to establish whether it is out-patient clinics, varied teaching and learning approaches, or a combination of the two that are responsible for the improved performance in medical students. REFERENCES 1.
Behmanesh F, Ahanchian H, Vakili R, Ahanchian N, Bagheri S. Teaching final-year medical students in a paediatric ambulatory care unit. Clin Teach 2014;11:361–364.
2.
Davis MH, Dent JA. Comparison of student learning in the out-patient clinic and ward round. Med Educ 1994;28:208–212.
3.
Vaughn L, Baker R. Teaching in the medical setting: balancing teaching styles, learning styles and teaching methods. Med Teach 2001;23:610–612.
Corresponding author’s contact details: Rizwan Dewji BSc (Hons), Imperial College School of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK. E-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1111/tct.12333
70 © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2015; 12: 70
tct_12333.indd 70
1/14/2015 3:47:05 PM
