Development and preliminary evaluation of student-authored electronic cases.

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Medical Education
• Digital Learning Tools
• Clinical Skills Development

Background:

• Virtual patients are established in human medical education but underutilized in veterinary training.
• The Royal Veterinary College (RVC) sought to integrate virtual patient technology into its undergraduate curriculum.
• Limited adoption of virtual patient methods in veterinary education necessitates innovative approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop student-authored virtual patient cases for self-directed learning in veterinary undergraduate education.
• To enhance the quality of clinical learning experiences and develop clinical reasoning skills.
• To supplement existing teaching caseloads with interactive, student-generated content.

Main Methods:

• A two-stage process for virtual patient creation was implemented.
• Students compiled clinical data and media from real hospital cases.
• Cases were developed using a customized PowerPoint template, presented, and refined into virtual patients with self-assessment tools.

Main Results:

• 163 final-year students (81% response rate) participated, with all creating electronic cases.
• Students created cases across an average of 4.3 rotations.
• Feedback indicated that creating and using these virtual patient cases was beneficial and improved students' case management approach.

Conclusions:

• Student-authored virtual patient cases are a viable method to enhance veterinary clinical education.
• This approach effectively supports the development of clinical reasoning and self-directed learning.
• The initiative successfully integrated digital tools into the veterinary undergraduate curriculum.