PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Hong, Dennis
AU  - Regehr, Glenn
AU  - Reznick, Richard K.
TI  - The efficacy of a computer-assisted preoperative tutorial for clinical clerks
DP  - 1996 Jun 01
TA  - Canadian Journal of Surgery
PG  - 221--224
VI  - 39
IP  - 3
4099  - http://canjsurg.ca/content/39/3/221.short
4100  - http://canjsurg.ca/content/39/3/221.full
SO  - CAN J SURG1996 Jun 01; 39
AB  - Objective: To assess the effectiveness of computer-assisted preoperative tutorials on human anatomy in improving the operating-room learning experience for clinical clerks.Design: Crossover trials with immediate assessment and approximately 1-week delay between trials.Setting: General surgery operating room of a university teaching hospital.Subjects: Eight 4th-year clinical clerks on a single 8-week surgical rotation.Main Outcome Measures: The senior surgeon’s assessment of the clerk’s knowledge and understanding of the operation, according to a six-item questionnaire, and the clerk’s own assessment of the experience in the operating room, according to an eight-item questionnaire.Results: Surgeons rated the clerks’ performances in the operating room as better when they had received the preoperative tutorial (mean [and standard deviation], 3.7 [0.4]) than when they had not received the preoperative tutorial (3.0 [0.3]). The difference (0.7 [0.6]) was statistically significant (t7 = 3.3, p < 0.01). Similarly, clerks rated their own experience more positively when they had received the tutorial (4.0 [0.2]) than when they had not (3.1 [0.3]), with the difference (0.9 [0.5]) being statistically significant (t7 = 4.9, p < 0.001).Conclusions: Short, preoperative, computer-assisted tutorials on human anatomy can have a positive impact on the clerk’s level of knowledge and confidence in the operating room. Further research is warranted into the extent to which students spontaneously make use of these tutorials.