Volume 47, Issue 2

Several International Universities are appointing International Academicians as External Examiners, Lecturers and Supervisors for all programs including undergraduate (BA’s and BSc) and Post-graduate (MSc and PhD) degree programs. University of Zimbabwe (UZ) in Harare and University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy are appointing external examiners for their under-graduate and post-graduate programs. In this manuscript, I would like to give you some information about both universities as one of their external examiners and supervisors.

Writing a research proposal is not a simple task if we wish–and we do usually wish!–to succeed in putting our project into practice. Three different developing stages should indeed be clearly borne in mind from the very beginning. The first stage requires you (the applicant) “ To have your own idea ”, thus demanding novelty and originality in the way of thinking; the second has the goal “ To get your idea funded ”, thus entailing project feasibility and persuasion in the way in which the idea is presented; and the third is “ To run the project ”, thus requiring resources and local implementation. The first step–i.e., to think out of the box, to be different, to be unique–is the most difficult task, the challenging point in the elaboration process. The importance of reading scientific literature, being aware of competitors and developing original thoughts will be discussed. And communication–from brain to brain, from yours to proposal reviewers’ mind–will unavoidably emerge as the voussoir, the wedge-shaped or tapered stone used to construct the whole project. In this context, the three pillars of the Aristotle’s Rhetorical Triangle will be discussed: ethos (credibility), logos (reasoning) and pathos (empathy). It will end with a basic, central principle as “ Have the brain full up with the whole story before writing any single word on any blank piece of paper ”.

Objectives Ege University Medical School initiated system based integrated clinical internship in 2011. The need for a mentor who would closely monitor and guide the student in knowledge and skill gains for every clinical internship block and who would be an academic role model was well established. The aim of this study reports the results of the clinical internship mentoring program in the Ege University Medical School. Methods The Clinical Internship Counseling Committee reviewed similar programs in the literature, conducted focus group discussions, determined the wishes and needs of the students, and developed a mentoring program. Results The program was initiated by announcing the student-mentor matches and the procedure which was based on meetings of the student-mentor at the 1st, 8th and 13th weeks of the integrated internship. This meeting was designed to be a time for the mentor to guide the student to achieve the internship goals, to establish his/her internship progress file and to be an academic role model. At the final evaluation of the mentor, communication between student and the progress in the establishment of the internship progress file contributed to the 5% of the final internship success grade. Conclusions Evaluation of 7 years of experience led to the agreement that the goals of clinical internship program should be integrated into the newly established “Student Mentorship Program” that starts at the 1st year of the medical school.

Objectives Three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and modelling techniques based on computer vision have shown significant progress in recent years. Patient-specific models, which are derived from the imaging data set and are anatomically consistent with each other, are important for the development of knowledge and skills. The purpose of this article is to share information about three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and modelling techniques and its importance in medical education. Methods As 3D printing technology develops and costs are lower, adaptation to the original model will increase, thus making models suitable for the anatomical structure and texture. 3D printing has emerged as an innovative way to help surgeons implement more complex procedures. Results Recent studies have shown that 3D modelling is a powerful tool for pre-operative planning, proofing, and decision-making. 3D models have excellent potential for alternative interventions and surgical training on both normal and pathological anatomy. 3D printing is an attractive, powerful and versatile technology. Conclusions Patient-specific models can improve performance and improve learning faster, while improving the knowledge, management and confidence of trainees, whatever their area of expertise. Physical interaction with models has proven to be the key to gaining the necessary motor skills for surgical intervention.

The Weizmann Institute of Science is one of the world’s leading multidisciplinary basic research institutions in the natural sciences and mathematics. It is located in Rehovot, some 40 km west of Jerusalem, Israel. The Weizmann Institute has already a considerable history of fundamental research and discovery achievements, all driven by curiosity and creativity that led to remarkable appreciation. Inherent to its being an active research center, the Weizmann Institute has, already from its inception, been playing a major role in educating a substantial proportion of Israel’s scientific leadership. Öz Weizmann Bilim Enstitüsü, İsrail’de Kudüs’ün 40 km batısında Rehovot’ta bulunan, doğa bilimleri ve matematik alanında dünyanın önde gelen multidisipliner araştırma enstitülerinden biridir. Enstitü, merak ve yaratıcılıkla sürdürülen oldukça önemli temel araştırma ve keşiflerin yapıldığı başarılarla dolu tarihsel bir geçmişe sahiptir. Weizmann Enstitüsü, aktif bir araştırma merkezi olmasının yanında, kuruluşundan itibaren İsrail bilimine öncülük eden eğitimin önemli bir parçası olarak rol oynamaktadır.

Objectives Integration of the basic medical sciences with clinical medicine motivates medical students by showing how the fundamental concepts they have learned will come into their future practice. In this context, we created clinical integration sessions (CIS) in our first-year medical curriculum. Methods The instructors of different disciplines wrote the clinical scenarios together. The scenarios were discussed in five sessions with 39 first-year students. The first session’s scenario consisted of four brief “anemia” cases. The next four sessions included a single case, according to the feedback of the students. Students formed groups of 7–8 participants. In the first 2 h, the scenarios were discussed in the groups and questions were answered by the students. In the third hour, the instructors answered the questions together with the students. After the first CIS, written feedback obtained from the students via a survey. Results The survey provided positive feedback on the benefits of active learning within small group discussions, and most of the students thought that their background was sufficient to solve the cases, with some literature search. Conclusion The scenarios, which provide multidisciplinary integration of basic medical sciences and clinical medicine, can be useful educational materials.

When university instructors face the need to train students on an experimental science, it means there should be a strong load of learning how to work in a laboratory, to understand the techniques, and to interpret results. However, it is often the case that there are difficulties associated e.g. to the lack of laboratory space, instrumentation or time in the course schedule. This article presents some guidance that may help in choosing, designing and particularly implementing practices around virtual laboratories and other simulations of experimental environments and techniques. The objectives are to provide a more active and significant learning, by engaging students in the process, to support and facilitate the practical sessions and, in cases where real experiments are not feasible, to provide some alternative exposure of the students to the laboratory work.

Objectives In 2018, Harvard University provided a 10-week online course titled “Improving Global Health: Focusing on Quality and Safety” as using Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) web-based platform. The course was designed for those who care about health and healthcare and wish to learn more about how to measure and improve that care – for themselves, for their institutions, or for their countries. The goal of this course was to provide visual and written education tools for different countries and different age groups. In respect to the aim of this study is to evaluate the impressions and benefits of group learning activity and educational needs after this “Improving Global Health” courses experience with an online survey among the participants. Methods Sixty-six family medicine practitioners and trainees who were among the participants of the course were the universe of the study. These young General Practitioners/Family Physicians (GPs/FPs) from different countries were organized among themselves to follow the course as a group activity. Two weeks after the course, an online survey was sent to all the participants of this group activity. Results Twenty-eight out of 66 participants (42.4%) completed the survey and provided feedback on their perspectives and experience. Most of them were female (70.4%), and have not attended any MOOC course before (63%). This international group achieved a completion rate of approximately 65% by the deadline and nearly 90% including those finishing afterward. The majority felt that the group activity proved beneficial and supportive in nature. Conclusions Well-structured, sustainable e-learning platforms will be the near futures’ medical learning devices in a world without borders. Future studies should further explore facilitators and barriers among FPs for enrolling and completing MOOCs. Furthermore, there is a need to evaluate how these group-learning initiatives may help participants incorporate lessons learned from the course into their daily practice.

Objectives Learning approach in a certain learning process is based on the student’s intentions, behaviors, and habits according to his/her perceptions of the task of learning and determines the amount and quality of learning. The objective of this study is to evaluate the learning approaches of 1st and 4th grade midwifery students to biochemistry course and the change, if there is any, through their education. Methods This is an observational, cross-sectional study. The research population consisted of the voluntary students (86.47%, n:147) of the 2017–2018 season of the 1st and 4th class of Manisa Celal Bayar University, Health Science Faculty, Midwifery Department (n:170). Data were collected by using the “Introductory Information Form” and the “Learning Approach Scale”, and evaluated in the SPSS package program by performing number, percentile, mean, standard deviation, independent t test. Results The mean age of the students was 20.82 ± 1.81. Over 95% of the students stated that biochemistry lesson was necessary, while 59.9% reported that their biochemistry knowledge was insufficient. Over 87% of the student expressed their belief that the content of the biochemistry classes will help them in their professional career. Mean score of deep approach for Learning Approach Scale was 34.13 ± 6.07 (Min:19.00–Max:50.00), and mean score of superficial approach for Learning Approach Scale was 26.94 ± 6.37 (Min:15.00–Max:50.00). There was a significant relation between deep approach scale score and the perception of high importance of biochemistry in the professional life (p<0.05). Conclusions Midwifery students, who believe that biochemistry is necessary for their professional career have a higher motivation for learning biochemistry, thus perform a deeper approach to learning. In general, creating effective and dynamic educational environments that support deep learning is necessary for enhancing the learning of biochemistry.

Objectives Izmir University of Economics Faculty of Medicine’s aim is to implement a novel and effective system called “Next Generation Medical Education”. This system is designed to provide us a modernized medical education which covers the students’ requirements. This study is designed to investigate different aspects of this educational system from the student’s perspective. Methods Main characteristic features of the educational system was determined and a survey as well as phone interviews have been conducted in order to determine the views of the students of the faculty regarding these aspects. Results The survey and the phone interview results showed that the students are mostly satisfied with current system and all of its components. Conclusions We have determined the key aspects of the system as: integrated curriculum, learning to learn, advisorship, e-learning and feedback mechanisms. We believe that the next generation education system adopted by our faculty is a way of transforming medical education in order to train qualified physicians for tomorrow.

Objectives Postgraduate midwifery students learn the science and art of midwifery in clinical settings through the integration of evidence-based knowledge, practical skills, quality of care, and personal attitudes. These personal attitudes are confidence, intuition, problem solving, critical thinking, and self-efficacy. This study’s goal was to evaluate the clinical self-efficacy of midwifery students who took courses related to biochemistry in the postgraduate education program. Methods A cross-sectional design was used in the study. In the study, data collection was performed using surveys from students in the postgraduate midwifery education program. The study data were collected by employing the “Introductory Information Form” and the “Self-efficacy for Clinical Evaluation Scale.” Data evaluation was performed by number, percentage, mean, and correlation test. Results It was revealed that 67.7% of midwifery students who took the courses were postgraduate students in the thesis stage, 41% of them worked in secondary health services, and 51.6% of them had a clinical experience of 5 years and more. The total score of the self-efficacy perception subscale was 4.22 ± 0.49 (1–5), whereas the total score of the perceived confidence subscale was 4.57 ± 0.45 (1–5). There was a statistically significant correlation between the self-efficacy subscale and the importance subscale. Conclusions The results indicated that postgraduate midwifery students had high clinical self-efficacy scores. We think that the elective courses related to biochemistry in the postgraduate midwifery education program may have positively affected their clinical skills. We anticipate that it will be appropriate to conduct research with a larger sample size to examine the effect of postgraduate midwifery education on students’ clinical self-efficacy.

Objectives The teaching and assessment of soft skills such as ethical behaviour remains a challenge to dental schools. This paper aims to attempt to help the description and retrospective evaluation of a history of dentistry and medical ethics course in the dentistry curriculum of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University. Methods The study included students (n=78) of the Faculty of Dental Sciences of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University. History of dentistry and medical ethics are taught each for 1 h, total 2 h per week in the curriculum (theoretical/cases). Students’ academic performance was evaluated with mid-term and final exams. Participants were assessed according to their level of success and failure. Results Participants of the study were 51.3% (n=40) male and 48.7% (n=38) female students. The success rate of the midterm exam was 78.34%, while the success rate of the final was 76.32%. Mid-term exam success was not statistically significantly different than final exam (p>0.215). Conclusions The success of our students in the history of dentistry and ethics course are promising clues for us to propose that there is value in taking the time to teach the course in dental curriculum.