title: Effectiveness of a 40-minute Ophthalmologic Examination Teaching Session on Medical Student Learning.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Emergency physicians are among the few specialists besides ophthalmologists who commonly perform ophthalmologic examinations using the slit lamp and other instruments. However, most medical schools in the United States do not require an ophthalmology rotation upon completion. Teaching procedural skills to medical students can be challenging due to limited resources and instructor availability. Our study assesses the effectiveness of a 40-minute hands-on teaching session on ophthalmologic examination for medical students using only two instructors and low-cost equipment.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed an interventional study using a convenience sample of subjects. Pre- and post-workshop questionnaires on students' confidence in performing ophthalmologic examination were administered. We used a paired t-test and Wilcoxon rank test to analyze the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 30 participants in the study, the mean age was 25 and the majority were first-year medical students. The students' confidence in performing every portion of the ophthalmologic exam increased significantly after the teaching session. We found that the average confidence level before the teaching session were below 2 on a 1-5 Likert scale (1 being the least confident). Confidence levels in using the slit lamp had the highest improvement among the skills taught (2.17 95% CI [1.84-2.49]). Students reported the least improvement in their confidence in assessing extraocular movements (0.73, 95% CI [0.30-1.71]) and examining pupillary function (0.73, 95% CI [0.42-1.04]). We observed the biggest difference in median confidence level in the use of the tonometer (4 with a p-value of <0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A 40-minute structured hands-on training session can significantly improve students' confidence levels in ophthalmologic skills.
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Emergency Department, Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Wirachin
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hoonpongsimanont
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Emergency Department, Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Kambria
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Emergency Department, Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Wu
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Emergency Department, Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Dena
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nasir
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Emergency Department, Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Bharath
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chakravarthy
authors.affiliation: University of California, Irvine School of Medicine, Emergency Department, Irvine, California.
authors.forename: Shahram
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lotfipour
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004493:Education; D004501:Education, Medical / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D004635:Emergency Medicine / Q000193:education; D005128:Eye Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009885:Ophthalmology / Q000193:education*; D009887:Ophthalmoscopy; D010808:Physical Examination / Q000379:methods; D066167:Slit Lamp; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods; D014065:Tonometry, Ocular