A REQUIRED TRAUMA LECTURE SERIES FOR JUNIOR MEDICAL-STUDENTS

Objective: The lecture series portion of the Advanced Trauma Life Supp ort Course is taught by full-time surgical faculty as part of the orie ntation process for an 8-week required surgery clerkship for third-yea r medical students at the University of Louisville School of Medicine. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of this lecture series on student learning and retention. Materials and Methods: A pre - and post-lecture series test and control group design was used. Comp lete data were obtained on 299 students in 15 consecutive rotations. M easurements and Main Results: Those students who attended the lecture series achieved a significantly higher score on the post-lecture serie s test than did the control group (70% vs. 53%). The long-term retenti on of the material, as measured by a delayed post-lecture series test 7-weeks after the lectures occurred, was high. Conclusions: The data i ndicate that the ATLS lecture series alone results in gains in knowled ge for junior medical students. We believe that these data indicate th at ATLS lectures should be adopted as a minimum requirement for teachi ng trauma principles in all medical schools.