Year: 2010
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Anatomy instruction at Australian and New Zealand medical schools has been the subject of considerable debate recently. Many commentators have lamented the gradual devaluation of anatomy as core knowledge in medical courses. To date, much of this debate has been speculative or anecdotal and lacking reliable supporting data. To provide a basis for better understanding and more informed discussion, this study analyses how anatomy is currently taught and assessed in Australian and New Zealand medical schools. A mailed questionnaire survey was sent to each of the 19 Australian and 2 New Zealand medical schools, examining the time allocation, content, delivery and assessment of anatomy for the 2008 academic year. Nineteen of the 21 (90.5%) universities invited to participate completed the survey. There was considerable variability in the time allocation, content, delivery and assessment of anatomy in Australasian medical schools. The average total hours of anatomy teaching for all courses was 171 h (SD +/- 116.7, range 56/560). Historical data indicate a major decline in anatomy teaching hours within medical courses in Australia and New Zealand. Our results reveal that as there is no national curriculum for anatomy instruction, the curriculum content, instruction methodology and assessment is highly variable between individual institutions. Such variability in anatomy teaching and assessment raises an important question: is there also variable depth of understanding of anatomy between graduates of different medical courses?
Source: ANZ Journal of Surgery
Authors: Steven Craig, Noel Tait, David Boers, Darryl McAndrew
Institution: University of Wollongong
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: bronze
Funders: University of Otago, Bond University, Newcastle University, University of Tasmania, University of New South Wales, University of Western Sydney, University of Wollongong, Deakin University, Monash University, University of Melbourne, Flinders University, Griffith University, James Cook University, Western Sydney University
OpenAlex ID: W1996286032