Introducing integrated teaching and comparison with traditional teaching in undergraduate medical curriculum: A pilot study

Abstract

Background: Medical colleges in India usually follow a traditional curriculum, characterized by "discipline wise model" which compelled Medical Council of India to recommend a teaching approach characterized by maximal efforts to encourage integrated teaching (IT) between traditional subject areas. Objectives: To assess the feasibility of IT; to compare IT with traditional teaching (TT) and to analyze the student's feedback and faculty feedback about perception of IT. Materials and Methods: An interventional study was conducted among fifth semester students using pre-and post-test questionnaire and student and faculty feedback forms. Students were divided randomly into two groups. IT was introduced to Group I on the topic of tuberculosis (TB) by faculties of different disciplines; using methods of didactic lectures, seminars, role play, clinical case presentation, demonstration of Ziehl-Neelsen stain, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccination and visit to Directly Observed Treatment Centre. Group II were exposed to TT on TB by faculties of Community Medicine using method of didactic lectures. Paired and un-paired t-test and effect size were used as statistical tests. Results: Statistically significant results were obtained using pre-and post-test questionnaire of IT. Similarly, statistically significant results were obtained using posttest results of IT and TT. Effect size that is: Cohen's d and Pearson correlation revealed large effect which indicates high influence on student achievement. The students and faculty showed a positive attitude about IT. Conclusion: The introduction of IT was found to be feasible and to be more effective and acceptable than TT.