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Biomedical subjects

D M Kaufman

Publications and source records attributed to D M Kaufman.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Basic sciences in problem-based learning and conventional curricula: students' attitudes.

The purpose of this study was to compare the attitudes toward basic sciences of students in a preclinical problem-based curriculum and a conventional lecture-based curriculum at the end of their second year of medical school. The results showed that the PBL class had more positive attitudes toward basic sciences than students in the conventional class. These results may reflect a learning environment where students meet many scientist role models as teachers and where basic science is learnt in the context of clinical problems.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1997

Teaching and assessing clinical skills using virtual reality.

The need to improve the teaching and assessing of students' procedural skills has been well 0 encounters, often with little or no supervision. Assessment of these skills has depended on rudimentary physical models, or standardized patients. The limitations of these methods also are well known. A new technology known as "Virtual Reality" has tremendous potential to assist medical educators in teaching and assessing clinical skills of students, residents and physicians in practice. Virtual Reality consists of a computer-generated three-dimensional simulation in which the user both views and manipulates the contents of the environment. Various degrees of immersion may be experienced that may include elements such as vision, touch or sound. It can provide an environment that so closely represents an actual clinical situation that skills learned will transfer to patients. Many variations in anatomy or other complications can be presented, and trainees can practice hundreds of times until their skills are perfected. This paper describes current activities in this area in the Dalhousie Faculty of Medicine and elsewhere. Various forms of Virtual Reality are described and their application to particular clinical areas are described.

Computer-Assisted Instruction↗
PubMed1997

Preparing our future physicians: integrating medical informatics into the undergraduate medical education curriculum.

This paper describes how two medical schools have integrated "medical informatics" into their undergraduate medical education programs with the aim of preparing their students for future practice. It describes the components or elements of the informatics programs, how learning opportunities have been integrated into the curricula, how the informatics programs have evolved, and future directions. The medical schools approached the task of introducing informatics in a parallel way. Following needs identification, similar topic areas, goals, and specific informatics learning objectives were developed. These were used as a basis for implementation and evaluation. In general, the topic areas selected are: computer literacy, communications, information retrieval and management, computer-aided learning, patient management, office practice management, and hospital information systems. Learning opportunities in informatics were integrated for the above goals, in accordance with how the curriculum was organized in each school. These opportunities, and the support activities provided will be described.

Alberta↗
PubMed1996

Comparing students' attitudes in problem-based and conventional curricula.

PURPOSE: To compare the attitudes of students in a new problem-based learning (PBL) medical curriculum and in the previous conventional curriculum after the second curriculum year, prior to the clinical clerkships. The authors hypothesized that the PBL students would have more favorable attitudes toward their learning environment, social issues in medicine, and their curriculum. METHOD: The students in the classes of 1995 (conventional curriculum) and 1996 (PBL curriculum) at the Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine were asked to complete two main questionnaires and a few additional items that measure attitudes. The admission variables of the two classes were equivalent. Their attitude ratings were compared using t-tests. RESULTS: Response rates averaged 87% (73 of 84 students) and 68% (57 of 84) for the PBL and conventional classes, respectively. The students in the PBL class had more positive attitudes toward their learning environment on the subscales for enthusiasm and authoritarianism (i.e., they rated their curriculum more favorably for democratic decision making); they were less positive on the student-interaction subscale. No significant difference emerged between the two classes on any subscale for attitudes about social issues in medicine. The PBL students reported more positive attitudes toward their curriculum. CONCLUSION: The study results support the superiority of the PBL curriculum regarding the students' attitudes toward their medical education.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1996

Tutoring in problem-based learning: perceptions of teachers and students.

This study examined teacher and student perceptions during the first 2 years of a complete transition from a conventional to a problem-based learning (PBL) curriculum at Dalhousie University. Teaching staff who had tutored in the two pre-clinical years (n = 88) completed a questionnaire at the end of the 1993-94 academic year, and student assessments of their tutors were collated for all nine units (n = 597). Seven research questions were addressed in the study which examined the faculty, student and administrative aspects of tutoring. The results showed that faculty tutors rated PBL more highly than traditional medical school methods on eight of the nine items. Teaching staff were very satisfied with their tutoring experience, but expressed a need for further training in group facilitation, questioning, handling 'difficult' situations and evaluating students. They reported that their workload outside tutorials was cut almost in half in their second year of tutoring. Students expected a tutor to be a skilled group facilitator who would guide them in their learning, while helping to maintain a positive group climate. They did not want the tutor to teach the content as they perceived the task of learning to be their responsibility. Several major administrative factors affected tutors' and students' perceptions of tutorials, including: changing tutorial group composition and tutor every 8-10 weeks; team tutoring; end-of-unit exam; conflicting demands of basic science 'vertical' units and ongoing 'horizontal' units; departmental budgetary requirements for basic medical education; recognition of tutoring in promotion and tenure decisions; and recruitment of tutors.

Attitude↗
PubMed1995

A response to the ACME-TRI report: the Dalhousie problem-based learning curriculum.

With the class of 1996, Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine instituted a totally revised curriculum. The revisions transformed an entirely traditional curriculum to a student-centred curriculum, which is based on learning in context, and incorporates a problem-based approach to the entire curriculum. This paper describes our experience in the actual implementation of our revised curriculum, in the context of the Association of American Medical Colleges Assessing Change in Medical Education--The Road to Implementation (ACME-TRI) Report.

Canada↗
PubMed1995

Integrating medical informatics into an undergraduate medical curriculum.

his paper outlines a rationale for medical schools to integrate medical informatics into their curricula. The approach used in the problem-based undergraduate curriculum at Dalhousie University School of Medicine is presented in three areas: organizational structure, implementation, and curriculum development. Seven goal areas defined to guide the curriculum development process are described.

Computer Literacy↗
PubMed1995

Medical informatics and problem-based learning in conjunction.

At Dalhousie, we integrated medical informatics as a horizontal theme in the problem-based learning undergraduate medical education curriculum. The rationales for these initiatives can be addressed along the following dimensions: political, philosophical, psychological, educational, and professional practice. Student attitudes towards computers are changing, and incoming students are increasingly computer-literate. Of those Med I students surveyed at the end of the 1993-94 academic year, 94% felt that computers were moderately important or essential to medical education; 86% of Med II students surveyed were of the same opinion. The education of future physicians can be enhanced when medical informatics is introduced into a curriculum in conjunction with the problem-based learning approach.

Attitude to Computers↗
PubMed1994

Tutoring in problem-based learning: a teacher development process.

Undergraduate medical curricula have become increasingly innovative in order to better prepare their graduates to enter practice, with the most notable innovation being the introduction of problem-based learning (PBL). This paper describes Dalhousie University's transition to PBL, from a teacher development perspective. The paper reinforces the need for a well-designed teacher development process that is carefully implemented and evaluated in order to ensure a successful curriculum change. A seven-stage process for teacher development of tutors at Dalhousie is described, and programme evaluation data are reported from both students' and teachers' points of view. The results from the evaluation are very positive and suggest ways of improving the teacher development process. These improvements are described, as well as future plans in this area.

Canada↗
PubMed1994

Use of botulinum toxin injections for spasmodic torticollis of tardive dystonia.

Because intramuscular injections of type A botulinum toxin (btx) are effective for idiopathic spasmodic torticollis, they were administered to 3 patients who had neck movements as their only manifestation of tardive dystonia. Each improved, with a decrease in involuntary movement and reduction in pain. None had either systemic or local side effects. Although expensive, btx treatment is recommended for involuntary neck movements of tardive dystonia but not yet for the classic buccolingual dyskinesia.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Neurologic history and examination results and their relationship to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 serostatus in hemophilic subjects: results from the hemophilia growth and development study.

In a prospective study of the growth and neuropsychologic function of hemophilic subjects, 333 boys, median age of 12.3 years, had baseline neurologic examinations. The study population included 207 individuals (62%) who were seropositive for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Overall results indicated that 11% had abnormalities of cranial nerve function, 17% had abnormal deep tendon reflexes, 23% had abnormal strength, 25% had abnormal coordination, and 31% had abnormal tone, bulk, or range of motion. By contrast, 2% or fewer displayed abnormal movements or had abnormal pain or vibratory sensation, or altered mental status. Abnormalities were more common in older hemophilic subjects (eg, 67 [38%] of 177 subjects > or = 12 years of age had abnormal tone, bulk, or range of motion vs 36 [23%] of 156 subjects < 12 years of age). When compared with regard to HIV-1 status, HIV-seronegative and HIV-seropositive subjects did not differ with regard to head circumference or the frequency of abnormalities of cranial nerve function, sensation, muscle strength, or coordination. However, deep tendon reflexes and tone, bulk, or range of motion were more frequently abnormal in HIV-1-seropositive individuals. More HIV-1-positive subjects had at least one increased deep tendon reflex (13/207 [6.3%] vs 1/126 [0.8%] in seronegatives) and more had non-hemophilia-related decreases in muscle bulk (7/207 [3.4%] vs 0/126 in seronegatives). These results indicate that hemophilia causes substantial neurologic dysfunction and that certain findings, such as changes in muscle-stretch reflexes or muscle bulk, may also reflect the neurologic consequences of HIV infection.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Migraine visual auras. A medical update for the psychiatrist.

Auras of visual aberrations as well as other neurological disturbances including somatosensory and perceptual symptoms that precede a headache distinguish migraine with aura (classic migraine) from migraine without an aura (common migraine) and other varieties of headache. Visual auras that characterize migraine with aura can be classified and distinguished from other neurologic and psychiatric causes of visual aberrations. Examples of migraine visual auras, which are often described but rarely shown in the medical literature, are presented and their mechanism is discussed.

Hallucinations↗