Is it Time for a Specific Undergraduate Interventional Radiology Curriculum?

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Interventional Radiology
• Medical Curricula

Background:

• Interventional radiology (IR) is often underrepresented in undergraduate medical education.
• Final-year medical students require foundational knowledge of IR for appropriate patient management and referrals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate final-year medical students' knowledge of common interventional radiology procedures.
• To compare student knowledge of IR with their understanding of other medical specialties.

Main Methods:

• A 14-question multiple-choice questionnaire was administered to final-year medical students.
• Knowledge scores for IR procedures were compared with those for non-IR procedures using a paired t-test.

Main Results:

• Students scored an average of 38% on IR procedures versus 57% on non-IR procedures (P < 0.0005).
• No student answered all questions correctly, with a median score of 5/11.
• 70% of students desired further exposure to IR, despite most having encountered it previously.

Conclusions:

• A significant knowledge gap exists regarding interventional radiology among medical students.
• The lack of exposure hinders appreciation for the specialty's role.
• Implementing a dedicated undergraduate IR curriculum is recommended to improve student knowledge and understanding.