[Problem-based learning in medical education. Experiences from a department of gynecology]

Problem-based learning (PBL) is an educational method based on a clinical problem, where students define their learning objectives, research these objectives, and report back. The aim of the present study was to compare PBL with other learning methods during a pregraduate clinical course.

PBL was applied to six groups of students (n = 35) during a pregraduate clinical course in obstetrics and gynaecology and compared with other learning methods, such as traditional lectures, participation in the clinical work of the department, and a training course in communication and clinical skills with simulated patients and phantoms. The learning methods were scored on a scale from zero to five.

The educational methods were evaluated differently (p < 0.01). PBL reached a score of at least four more often (33/35) than did traditional lectures (25/34), p < 0.05. Most of the students enjoyed PBL, although they found it time consuming. Twenty-one preferred the mixture of PBL and lectures, whereas 13 preferred more PBL and one solely preferred lectures.

The present study shows that it is possible to implement PBL sessions in clinical courses and the method is positively evaluated by both students and teachers.