PubMed · 10337142
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A Welsbacher. 1999. Making computers physician-friendly.. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10337142/
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BACKGROUND: Although computer-assisted education has been used to augment education in many areas, there are few studies of programs designed to replace lectures in a medical curriculum. OBJECTIVE: To test whether a thoughtfully designed computer program can replace a standard lecture in a pediatrics curriculum while teaching the subject matter equally well. METHODS: A computer program was developed to teach the Draw-a-Person developmental test using the multimedia-authoring tool Director. One of us (A.E.C.) tested and modified the program several times during its creation after submitting it to several objective evaluators. Thirty-nine students taking the clinical pediatrics rotation were chosen by month to interact with the program or attend the lecture. All students then scored 3 drawings and assigned them a developmental age according to the Draw-a-Person test rules. Students assigned to the computer program also completed a questionnaire evaluating the program in several subjective areas. A t test for 2 samples assuming equal variance was used to analyze the test results. RESULTS: Students receiving the lecture (control group) scored the 3 drawings as 5.43 years (age range, 4.5-8 years), 9.08 years (age range, 7-12 years), and 3.5 years (age range, 2-5 years), respectively. Those using the computer program (study group) scored the 3 drawings as 5.91 years (age range, 5-7 years), 7.68 years (age range, 7-8 years), and 4.34 years (age range, 3-5 years), respectively. The correct answers for the ages were 6, 7.75, and 4.25 years, respectively. A t test for 2 samples assuming equal variance showed that students using the computer program performed better on all 3 drawings (P<.05, P<.02, and P<.002, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Students using the computer program were more accurate than students attending the lecture when scoring drawings and estimating a developmental age from them. These results support the conclusion that a thoughtfully designed computer program can replace a standard lecture in a pediatrics curriculum.
OBJECTIVE: To identify the prevailing attitudes among physicians to use of computers in the clinical setting and specifically those attitudes that may be associated with the adoption of computers in practice. DESIGN: A self-completed, 20-question postal questionnaire sent to 4850 randomly selected physicians. The questionnaire focused on details of the physicians' practice; actual computerization of or intention to computerize clinical and administrative functions; attitudes towards computerization; self-perceived computer ability and knowledge; and demographic information. The attitude statements were grouped under four themes according to a factor analysis. RESULTS: The survey was completed by 897 physicians. Only physicians in 'individual' practices were included in the analysis. This group was further dichotomized into clinical users (those with one or more clinical functions computerized) and non-clinical users. Non-clinical users were older and had fewer specialist qualifications. Although there was strong support for the attitude statements among both groups with regard to the benefit of computerization to patient care, there was much less support for electronic medical records. Non-clinical users were concerned about the potentially negative impact of computerization on the clinical encounter and the perceived high cost of computerization. DISCUSSION: The attitudes among current clinical users and non-users were substantially different. The most important disincentives to computerization were the potential for interference with the patient-physician encounter and the cost of computerizing multiple practice locations. Turning these disincentives into opportunities for change remains the challenge.
OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between learning preferences, attitudes towards computers, and student evaluation of a computer-assisted instructional (CAI) program. CONTEXT: A third year required clerkship in surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. METHODS: A mixed-methods design combining attitudinal measures and qualitative interviews was employed to assess student reactions to a CAI program on angiography completed during a required surgical clerkship. Between January 1998 and July 1999, 151 students completed the program. Prior to participating, students completed the Rezler Learning Preference Inventory (LPI) and a computer attitudes survey (CAS). The LPI characterizes learning preferences as being abstract or concrete, individual or interpersonal, and student-structured or teacher-structured. The CAS measures attitudes towards computers and their role in education. After using the CAI program, students evaluated the module by completing an 18 item questionnaire. Based on LPI and CAS scores, 31 students were invited to participate in an in-depth qualitative interview on their experiences and perceptions of the program. RESULTS: There was no relationship between learning preferences, computer attitudes, and evaluation of the CAI program. Students were very positive about the program's content, clarity, organization, and ease of use. They also rated it as efficient and effective. However, many still indicated a preference for lecture and text-based learning. Qualitative interviews suggest students worry computers will supplant student--teacher contact. CONCLUSIONS: Learning preferences and prior attitudes toward computers did not bias student reactions to the CAI program assessed in this study. However, students expressed concerns that CAI would interfere with the traditional student--teacher encounter and relationship.