Abstract
Background: Musculo-skeletal conditions account for at least 10% of General Practice consultations yet the average time spent by UK medical students in orthopaedic and trauma surgery is only 2.7 weeks.
Aim: This study assessed whether a seven-week undergraduate musculoskeletal teaching program introduced in 2006 improved performance.
Methods: This seven week program combined Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery with Rheumatology and allied specialities. Its main elements were weekly plenary sessions, specialist clinics, a task-based workbook, regular assessments and traditional firm based teaching. The performance of 139 students who attended the new curriculum in its first year of introduction was assessed using multiple choice questions just before their final examinations in 2008 and was compared to that of a control group of students assessed in 2005 prior to program introduction.
Results: The 2008 students showed a 6% improvement in MCQ scores (p< 0.001) over the 2005 graduates. There was no difference between the 2005 students and a second control group of 46 students from 2008, who did not attend the new teaching program.
Conclusion: The program improved performance by providing more focused musculoskeletal training using available resources and by increasing the program duration.
The abstracts were prepared by Mr Matt Costa and Mr Ben Ollivere. Correspondence should be addressed to Mr Costa at Clinical Sciences Research Institute, University of Warwick, Clifford Bridge Road, Coventry CV2 2DX, UK.
