Integrating Cultural Awareness into Medical Gross Anatomy Instruction.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Cultural Competency
• Biomedical Sciences

Background:

• Medical education requires cultural training for optimal care in diverse societies.
• Existing cultural competency curricula can inadvertently reinforce stereotypes.
• Addressing varying patient identities is crucial to avoid default assumptions in medical training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a novel approach for integrating cultural content into biomedical sciences, specifically gross anatomy.
• To assess the impact of clinical vignette practice questions on students' cultural and socioeconomic awareness.
• To determine if integrating cultural content into basic sciences improves students' ability to utilize culturally relevant information.

Main Methods:

• A pilot study integrated clinical vignette practice questions into gross anatomy for medical students.
• Surveys were administered pre- and post-curriculum to assess self-reported cultural awareness and information utilization.
• Twenty-one students from the class of 2021 participated in the evaluation.

Main Results:

• Significant improvement was observed in the overall cultural awareness score (p=0.016).
• Students demonstrated increased awareness in incorporating culturally relevant information into treatment plans.
• Enhanced skills were noted in communicating with sensitivity and respect towards patients.

Conclusions:

• Integrating cultural content directly into biomedical sciences is a feasible and effective approach.
• This novel method allows simultaneous exposure to biomedical and cultural content.
• Culturally informed curriculum can be successfully implemented beyond traditional humanities courses in medical education.