A preliminary survey of professionalism teaching practices in anatomy education among Indian Medical Colleges

Abstract

Professionalism and ethics have gained widespread recognition as competencies to be fulfilled, taught, and assessed within medical education. The role of the anatomy course in developed nations has evolved over time and now encompasses multiple domains, including knowledge, skills, and the inculcation of professionalism and ethics. The Medical Council of India recently recommended the integration of professionalism teaching in undergraduate medical curricula. The authors investigated whether the initial orientation lectures and instructions given by faculty at the outset of undergraduate medical anatomy courses throughout India served a "hidden curriculum" regarding professionalism practices, and whether these orientation messages could serve as an early exposure to medical professionalism and ethics for medical students. An online survey was carried out among 102 anatomy faculty members across India requesting details about specific professionalism protocols and instructions regarding behavior in the dissection hall that are routinely given to preclinical students, as well as the importance that they placed on professional behavior. It was found that most faculty members regularly instruct students regarding expected behavior during the anatomy course, including dissection practices. These instructions stress attributes of professionalism like humanism, accountability, and honesty. However, there needs to be a more concentrated effort by educators to prohibit such unprofessional practices like dissection hall photography, and better information is required regarding biomedical waste disposal. Despite the absence of clear guidelines for professionalism teaching in medical education in India, the existing framework of anatomy education provides an opportunity to introduce the concept of professionalism to the first-year medical student. This opportunity may provide an early foundation for designing a professionalism-integrated curriculum. Anat Sci Educ 10: 433-443. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.

Can CanMEDS competencies be developed in medical school anatomy laboratories? A literature review

“…The other studies looked at the ways in which the anatomy laboratory itself could contribute to the development of student professionalism 56 - 63 …”

“…Pawlina and colleagues found a positive correlation between personal qualities of integrity and responsibility and written and practical exam marks 56 . Another study by Kuranakaran and colleagues served to highlight the role for anatomy educators in reinforcing professional behaviours and attitudes, including humanism, accountability and honesty 63 . Two interesting studies propose interventions to develop students’ professionalism within the anatomy lab.…”

Fostering Students’ Collaborative Learning Competencies and Professional Conduct in the Context of Two Gross Anatomy Courses in Veterinary Medicine

“…Thirdly, the dramatic increase in the use of social media by students (Coe et al, 2011;Coe et al, 2012;Cartledge et al, 2013;Kedrowicz et al, 2016) has also created a need to discuss and agree on the proper way that dissection work is discussed in the social media without compromising the rights of cadaver donors. This is related to unprofessional practices like unauthorized dissection hall photography (Karunakaran et al, 2017).…”

Currículo oculto, educação médica e profissionalismo: uma revisão integrativa

“…Já Karunakaram et al 30 apresentam a possibilidade de introduzir o conceito de profissionalismo ao estudante de medicina do primeiro ano durante as aulas de anatomia da faculdade, baseando-se em estudos que demonstraram que os estudantes no início da graduação são mais idealistas e receptivos no que diz respeito ao aprendizado de habilidades médicas essenciais, comparados com os graduandos dos últimos anos. Os autores acreditam que esse método refletiria positivamente no comportamento profissional dos futuros médicos.…”

“…O manuseio de instrumentos de dissecação, microscópios, lâminas e roupas adequadas, por sua vez, podem ser atribuídos a instruções sobre responsabilidade. Por isso, é defendida a ideia de que o currículo oculto poderia ser também um meio para desenvolver os valores esperados dos médicos, o que currículos formais, por si só, não seriam suficientes para atingir, segundo esses autores 30 .…”