Effectiveness of an Educational Intervention on Medical Students' Knowledge About and Attitude Towards...

This study was done to determine the effectiveness of a lecture and exposure to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) followed by interaction with patient, on medical students' knowledge about and attitude towards electroconvulsive therapy.

A questionnaire was administered to second year medical students to determine their baseline knowledge about and attitude towards electroconvulsive therapy. Following this, they underwent two educational interventions, a lecture on ECT and exposure to the procedure and interaction with the patient and relative, and their knowledge and attitude were reassessed after each intervention using the same questionnaire.

Eighty-one students completed all the three assessments. Students' knowledge about ECT at baseline was minimal (mean 3.58 out of 12). Their knowledge increased significantly after the lecture (mean 10.3), and there was further increase following exposure to the procedure and subsequent interaction with the patient and relative (mean 11.1). At baseline, students had an overall negative attitude towards ECT. There was significant improvement on all attitude items following the lecture. Exposure to the procedure resulted in further improvement in attitude regarding whether ECT is a cruel treatment and has to be used as a last resort.

Exposure to ECT in lecture and clinical scenarios followed by interaction with the patient should be included in the undergraduate medical curriculum to improve students' knowledge and attitude about this safe, effective, and potentially lifesaving treatment modality.