title: Students' perspective of bedside teaching: A qualitative study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine students' perception of bedside teaching, to find out barriers in its effective implementation and to suggest strategies to make it an effective learning tool.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted in Faculty of Medicine, Northern Border University Arar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between November 2013 and January 2014. The study design was qualitative inductive thematic analysis using transcripts from audio-recorded focus group discussions. Four focused group discussions with medical students of 4(th) and 5(th) year MBBS were conducted. Each 40 to 50 minutes discussion session was audio taped and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis extracted key themes pertaining to objectives of the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total 75 students of 4(th) and 5(th) year MBBS took part in the study, 48 were female and 27 of them were male. Students believed that bedside teaching is valuable for learning essential clinical skills. They described many barriers in its effective implementation: uncooperative and less number of patients and faculty attitude. Our students suggested various strategies to address these barriers: promotion of awareness among general public about students' learning and its benefits, free medical treatment for expatriates and building of university hospital.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Bedside teaching is an important learning tool. Its utility can be enhanced by orienting local patients' attitude towards importance of students' learning, by providing free medical treatment to expatriates and by including bedside teaching in faculty development programs.
authors.affiliation: Farhan Khashim Al-Swailmi, MD. Assistant Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine Northern Border University Arar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Farhan Khashim
authors.initials: FK
authors.lastname: Al-Swailmi
authors.affiliation: Ishtiaq Ali khan, FCPS. Associate Professor, Department of Surgery, Frontier Medical College Abbottabad, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Ishtiaq Ali
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Khan
authors.affiliation: Yasir Mehmood, FCPS. Assistant Professor of Surgery, Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine Northern Border University Arar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Yasir
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mehmood
authors.affiliation: Shehab Ahmed Al-Enazi, MD. Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine Northern Border University Arar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Shehab Ahmed
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Al-Enazi
authors.affiliation: Majed Alrowaili, MD. Assistant Professor, Department of Orthopedics, Faculty of Medicine Northern Border University Arar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Majed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alrowaili
authors.affiliation: Madallah Mashaan Al-Enazi, MD. Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Northern Border University Arar, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Madallah Mashaan
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Al-Enazi
keywords: Bedside Teaching; Faculty development; Students