A Medical Student Obstetric Curriculum Consisting of Online Modules and a Normal Spontaneous Vaginal Delivery Simulation Exercise.

OBJECTIVE: In many medical schools, students are exposed to obstetrics for 2 weeks during the third-year obstetrics and gynecology clerkship. Hence, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a curriculum combining online obstetric modules and a normal spontaneous vaginal delivery (NSVD) simulation on medical student knowledge and comfort pertaining to obstetrics at the start of the clerkship.

METHODS: Students completed the curriculum at the start of the clerkship. They completed questionnaires before and after each module and the simulation. The questionnaires assessed knowledge, management comfort level, and satisfaction with module/simulation. Comfort level and satisfaction scores were based on a 1-5 Likert scale (1 = very uncomfortable/unfavorable, 5 = very comfortable/favorable). Satisfaction scores for online modules were compared with those for a historical cohort of traditional lectures on the same topics. Students also rated satisfaction with the curriculum.

RESULTS: Sixty students participated. Mean knowledge and comfort scores significantly increased from 7.2 to 9.2 ( P  < .001) and from 2.7 to 3.9 ( P  < .001) before and after the modules, respectively. Although satisfaction scores for traditional lectures were significantly higher than for online modules (4.7 vs. 4.4, P  < .001), online modules were still favorably received. Mean satisfaction score for the NSVD simulation was 4.8. Overall, satisfaction score for the curriculum was 4.5.

DISCUSSION: An obstetric curriculum consisting of online modules and simulation significantly increases medical student learner knowledge and comfort and is associated with a high level of satisfaction.