Neuroscience education of undergraduate medical students. Part II: outcomeimprovement

Object. Because of political and economic pressures, primary care physician s are now charged with greater responsibility for the care of patients with disease processes definitively managed by neurosurgeons. The goal of this study was to establish the feasibility and efficacy of a neurosurgical curr iculum designed to teach future primary care physicians about these disease s. Methods. A compact, seven-lecture curriculum was developed to teach 3rd-yea r medical students about degenerative spine disease, stroke, tumor- and hyd rocephalus-related raised intracranial pressure, head and spine injury, and subarachnoid hemorrhage. This curriculum was given as part of a 6-week pil ot course that included neurology, neurosurgery, ophthalmology, and rehabil itation medicine components. This course was administered to two groups of 18 medical students, and an examination was administered at the end of the pilot course. The same examination was administered to an additional 19 stu dents immediately after their completion of the neurology course currently required. Students enrolled in the pilot neuroscience course performed significantly better (p < 0.001) on the examination than those who had completed the stan dard neurology course. Striking improvements were noted in the recognition and management of head injury, hydrocephalus, and radiculopathy. Conclusions. Inclusion of a short neurosurgery-related curriculum in a comb ined neuroscience course significantly improved student performance on an e xamination focusing on the recognition and management of common neurosurgic al disorders. Because primary care physicians are responsible for the initi al recognition and management of these disorders, the knowledge gained may lead to improved patient care.