Social media (SoMe) is increasingly used in higher education (HE) to access knowledge and enable global communication. The SoMe platform Twitter is particularly beneficial in these contexts because it is readily accessible, easily searchable (via hashtags) and global. Given these advantages, the twitter platform @AskAnatomist was created to foster a global weekly tweet chat, where students and academics can ask and address anatomy-related questions. The aim of this study was to identify themes arising in the early stages of the @AskAnatomy Twitter community to gain insights into current needs/key areas for academic anatomists, students, and other followers. A qualitative analysis of tweets including the hashtag #AnatQ, (the associated @AskAnatomist hashtag), was undertaken to achieve this aim. Thematic analysis revealed three core themes arising in the formative stages of the @AskAnatomist Twitter site: (1) anatomical education modalities, (2) specific anatomy content, and (3) research motivations. These themes reveal controversies within the field of anatomical sciences, areas for potential education resource improvement and research, as well as the humor of anatomists. Though the original intent of the @AskAnatomist site was to engage the general public in anatomy content and knowledge, tweet analysis suggests that academic anatomists were the primary active "tweeters". Interestingly, this analysis reveals that the @AskAnatomist site progressed into a web-based community of practice (CoP), suggesting an additional benefit of SoMe communities in the field of anatomy. Anat Sci Educ 11: 270-281. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.

IntroductionEasing students' transition to the clinical environment is vital in medical education. For anatomy, this can be achieved by incorporating medical imaging. Most resources for study of imaging solely cover structural identification, which does not adequately prepare students to interpret imaging in clinical practice. This resource adds to a series of tutorials incorporating clinical applications of anatomy.MethodsThe tutorial was a self-administered PowerPoint that guided students through principles of abdominal anatomy. It integrated radiological images, including X-ray, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging, plus clinical correlations and self-evaluation. It was evaluated as a review tool, using repeated-measures control/experimental design, on 100 Australian medical students in preclerkship years. Testing comprised knowledge-based questionnaires, a Likert self-efficacy scale, and open-ended evaluation questions.ResultsResults suggest the tutorial significantly improved direct knowledge (p < .001), as the experimental group's posttutorial test scores were superior for direct questions by 32% on average. This difference was particularly significant for short-answer and multiple-choice questions. Students' confidence with anatomy and imaging was enhanced.DiscussionThese results demonstrate the tutorial's strength as a review resource. Unlike our previous work, where students received tutorials alongside anatomy teaching, this tutorial was assessed after coursework completion with similar results. Direct knowledge significantly improved; however, indirect applications did not, perhaps due to complexity of the region. Nonetheless, the results reinforce the value of the series' tutorials as review tools, as well as adjunct tools alongside anatomy curricula. There is scope for further research into their use as stand-alone resources.

IntroductionImproving integration between basic science and clinical application is essential in medical education. Anatomy courses can do this by focusing on medical imaging interpretation. Most imaging textbooks rely on structural identification, which novice learners often struggle to apply to the health care environment, particularly in complex regions like the pelvis, which is multifaceted and differs substantially between sexes. To address this deficit, this resource extends our imaging-based tutorial series.MethodsThis tutorial was a self-administered PowerPoint incorporating X-ray, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging, which are all often used for the pelvic region, as well as self-quizzing and clinical applications. Using repeated-measures, control/experimental design, the tutorial was evaluated as a review tool for 57 Australian medical students in preclerkship years. Participants were evaluated by a rating self-efficacy scale, knowledge-based testing (multiple-choice, short-answer, and identification questions), and feedback to open-ended questions.ResultsResults indicate that the tutorial significantly improved direct knowledge (p = .006), as the experimental group's posttutorial scores for direct questions were superior by 21% on average. Significant improvements occurred specifically for direct short-answer and indirect image-identification questions.DiscussionThese results suggest the tutorial is an effective review tool. While previous tutorials were evaluated as adjunct tools, this tutorial was evaluated post–anatomy teaching with similar results. Students improved in direct and applied anatomy following tutorial exposure. This suggests that the tutorial series comprises valuable review and supplementary materials. None of our tutorials have been evaluated as a sole mechanism for teaching anatomy or imaging.