The Anatomy Course During COVID-19: The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death

Anette Wu; Que Yun Xiao; Sean McWatt; Rachel Utomo; Austin Talis; Kerstin Saraci; Cecilia Brassett; Mandeep Gill Sagoo; Richard Wingate; Chung Liang Chien; Hannes Traxler; Jens Waschke; Franziska Vielmuth; Yukari Yamada; Takeshi Sakurai; Mina Zeroual; Jorgen Olsen; Salma El-Batti; Suvi Viranta-Kovanen; Kevin Keay; William Stewart; Carol Kunzel; Paulette Bernd; Heike Kielstein; Geoffroy P.J.C. Noël

doi:10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7

The Anatomy Course During COVID-19: The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death

Anette Wu^*, Que Yun Xiao, Sean McWatt, Rachel Utomo, Austin Talis, Kerstin Saraci, Cecilia Brassett, Mandeep Gill Sagoo, Richard Wingate, Chung Liang Chien, Hannes Traxler, Jens Waschke, Franziska Vielmuth, Yukari Yamada, Takeshi Sakurai, Mina Zeroual, Jorgen Olsen, Salma El-Batti, Suvi Viranta-Kovanen, Kevin KeayWilliam Stewart, Carol Kunzel, Paulette Bernd, Heike Kielstein, Geoffroy P.J.C. Noël

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person cadaveric dissection laboratories for teaching anatomy were omitted by many schools around the world. While knowledge domains can be easily evaluated via remote exams, non-traditional discipline-independent skills such as those encouraged through reflection on the topic of death are often overlooked. This study investigated how different anatomy course formats played a role in initiating students’ reflections on death during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: In fall 2020, 217 medical, dental, premedical, and health sciences students from 13 international universities discussed differences in their anatomy courses online. Formats of anatomy courses ranged from dissection-based, prosection-based, hybrid (combination of dissection and prosection) to no laboratory exposure at all. Students’ responses to the question, “Did/does your anatomy course initiate your thinking about life's passing?” were collected, and they self-reported themes that were present in their reflections on death using a multiple-choice prompt. Statistical analyses to detect differences between students with and without exposure to cadavers were performed using the chi-squared test. Results: When comparing students who had exposure to human anatomical specimens to those who had no exposure, the majority of students with exposure thought that the course did initiate thoughts about life’s passing, compared to students without exposure (P < 0.05). Reflection themes were consistent across groups. Discussion: These findings indicate that anatomy dissection courses are important for the initiation of students’ feelings about the topic of death. Omission of cadaveric dissection- or prosection-based laboratories will decrease the likelihood that students initiate reflection on this topic and gain important transferable skills.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1033-1044
Number of pages	12
Journal	Medical Science Educator
Volume	32
Issue number	5
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7
Publication status	Published - Oct 2022

Keywords

Anatomy course
COVID-19
Dissection course
Peer interactions
Reflection on death
Students

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7

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Wu, A., Xiao, Q. Y., McWatt, S., Utomo, R., Talis, A., Saraci, K., Brassett, C., Sagoo, M. G., Wingate, R., Chien, C. L., Traxler, H., Waschke, J., Vielmuth, F., Yamada, Y., Sakurai, T., Zeroual, M., Olsen, J., El-Batti, S., Viranta-Kovanen, S., ... Noël, G. P. J. C. (2022). The Anatomy Course During COVID-19: The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death. Medical Science Educator, 32(5), 1033-1044. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7

@article{1801c3d6b36f4040be717d64b6a3e0d3,

title = "The Anatomy Course During COVID-19: The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death",

abstract = "Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person cadaveric dissection laboratories for teaching anatomy were omitted by many schools around the world. While knowledge domains can be easily evaluated via remote exams, non-traditional discipline-independent skills such as those encouraged through reflection on the topic of death are often overlooked. This study investigated how different anatomy course formats played a role in initiating students{\textquoteright} reflections on death during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: In fall 2020, 217 medical, dental, premedical, and health sciences students from 13 international universities discussed differences in their anatomy courses online. Formats of anatomy courses ranged from dissection-based, prosection-based, hybrid (combination of dissection and prosection) to no laboratory exposure at all. Students{\textquoteright} responses to the question, “Did/does your anatomy course initiate your thinking about life's passing?” were collected, and they self-reported themes that were present in their reflections on death using a multiple-choice prompt. Statistical analyses to detect differences between students with and without exposure to cadavers were performed using the chi-squared test. Results: When comparing students who had exposure to human anatomical specimens to those who had no exposure, the majority of students with exposure thought that the course did initiate thoughts about life{\textquoteright}s passing, compared to students without exposure (P < 0.05). Reflection themes were consistent across groups. Discussion: These findings indicate that anatomy dissection courses are important for the initiation of students{\textquoteright} feelings about the topic of death. Omission of cadaveric dissection- or prosection-based laboratories will decrease the likelihood that students initiate reflection on this topic and gain important transferable skills.",

keywords = "Anatomy course, COVID-19, Dissection course, Peer interactions, Reflection on death, Students",

author = "Anette Wu and Xiao, {Que Yun} and Sean McWatt and Rachel Utomo and Austin Talis and Kerstin Saraci and Cecilia Brassett and Sagoo, {Mandeep Gill} and Richard Wingate and Chien, {Chung Liang} and Hannes Traxler and Jens Waschke and Franziska Vielmuth and Yukari Yamada and Takeshi Sakurai and Mina Zeroual and Jorgen Olsen and Salma El-Batti and Suvi Viranta-Kovanen and Kevin Keay and William Stewart and Carol Kunzel and Paulette Bernd and Heike Kielstein and No{\"e}l, {Geoffroy P.J.C.}",

note = "Funding Information: The authors thank Michael Fortgang, MD, for helpful review of the manuscript, the students enrolled in the “International Collaboration and Exchange Program (ICEP) – Preparing Global Leaders for Healthcare” (https://www.internationalcollaborationexchange.org) for their participation in this research, and the collaborators at the international universities and the members of the advisory board of ICEP for their advice about the program (Drs. Leo Buhler, Mark Hardy, and Snehal Patel). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022, The Author(s) under exclusive licence to International Association of Medical Science Educators.",

year = "2022",

month = oct,

doi = "10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7",

language = "English",

volume = "32",

pages = "1033--1044",

journal = "Medical Science Educator",

issn = "2156-8650",

publisher = "Springer New York",

number = "5",

}

Wu, A, Xiao, QY, McWatt, S, Utomo, R, Talis, A, Saraci, K, Brassett, C, Sagoo, MG , Wingate, R, Chien, CL, Traxler, H, Waschke, J, Vielmuth, F, Yamada, Y, Sakurai, T, Zeroual, M, Olsen, J, El-Batti, S, Viranta-Kovanen, S, Keay, K, Stewart, W, Kunzel, C, Bernd, P, Kielstein, H & Noël, GPJC 2022, 'The Anatomy Course During COVID-19: The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death', Medical Science Educator, vol. 32, no. 5, pp. 1033-1044. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7

TY - JOUR

T1 - The Anatomy Course During COVID-19

T2 - The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death

AU - Wu, Anette

AU - Xiao, Que Yun

AU - McWatt, Sean

AU - Utomo, Rachel

AU - Talis, Austin

AU - Saraci, Kerstin

AU - Brassett, Cecilia

AU - Sagoo, Mandeep Gill

AU - Wingate, Richard

AU - Chien, Chung Liang

AU - Traxler, Hannes

AU - Waschke, Jens

AU - Vielmuth, Franziska

AU - Yamada, Yukari

AU - Sakurai, Takeshi

AU - Zeroual, Mina

AU - Olsen, Jorgen

AU - El-Batti, Salma

AU - Viranta-Kovanen, Suvi

AU - Keay, Kevin

AU - Stewart, William

AU - Kunzel, Carol

AU - Bernd, Paulette

AU - Kielstein, Heike

AU - Noël, Geoffroy P.J.C.

N1 - Funding Information: The authors thank Michael Fortgang, MD, for helpful review of the manuscript, the students enrolled in the “International Collaboration and Exchange Program (ICEP) – Preparing Global Leaders for Healthcare” (https://www.internationalcollaborationexchange.org) for their participation in this research, and the collaborators at the international universities and the members of the advisory board of ICEP for their advice about the program (Drs. Leo Buhler, Mark Hardy, and Snehal Patel). Publisher Copyright: © 2022, The Author(s) under exclusive licence to International Association of Medical Science Educators.

PY - 2022/10

Y1 - 2022/10

N2 - Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person cadaveric dissection laboratories for teaching anatomy were omitted by many schools around the world. While knowledge domains can be easily evaluated via remote exams, non-traditional discipline-independent skills such as those encouraged through reflection on the topic of death are often overlooked. This study investigated how different anatomy course formats played a role in initiating students’ reflections on death during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: In fall 2020, 217 medical, dental, premedical, and health sciences students from 13 international universities discussed differences in their anatomy courses online. Formats of anatomy courses ranged from dissection-based, prosection-based, hybrid (combination of dissection and prosection) to no laboratory exposure at all. Students’ responses to the question, “Did/does your anatomy course initiate your thinking about life's passing?” were collected, and they self-reported themes that were present in their reflections on death using a multiple-choice prompt. Statistical analyses to detect differences between students with and without exposure to cadavers were performed using the chi-squared test. Results: When comparing students who had exposure to human anatomical specimens to those who had no exposure, the majority of students with exposure thought that the course did initiate thoughts about life’s passing, compared to students without exposure (P < 0.05). Reflection themes were consistent across groups. Discussion: These findings indicate that anatomy dissection courses are important for the initiation of students’ feelings about the topic of death. Omission of cadaveric dissection- or prosection-based laboratories will decrease the likelihood that students initiate reflection on this topic and gain important transferable skills.

AB - Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person cadaveric dissection laboratories for teaching anatomy were omitted by many schools around the world. While knowledge domains can be easily evaluated via remote exams, non-traditional discipline-independent skills such as those encouraged through reflection on the topic of death are often overlooked. This study investigated how different anatomy course formats played a role in initiating students’ reflections on death during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: In fall 2020, 217 medical, dental, premedical, and health sciences students from 13 international universities discussed differences in their anatomy courses online. Formats of anatomy courses ranged from dissection-based, prosection-based, hybrid (combination of dissection and prosection) to no laboratory exposure at all. Students’ responses to the question, “Did/does your anatomy course initiate your thinking about life's passing?” were collected, and they self-reported themes that were present in their reflections on death using a multiple-choice prompt. Statistical analyses to detect differences between students with and without exposure to cadavers were performed using the chi-squared test. Results: When comparing students who had exposure to human anatomical specimens to those who had no exposure, the majority of students with exposure thought that the course did initiate thoughts about life’s passing, compared to students without exposure (P < 0.05). Reflection themes were consistent across groups. Discussion: These findings indicate that anatomy dissection courses are important for the initiation of students’ feelings about the topic of death. Omission of cadaveric dissection- or prosection-based laboratories will decrease the likelihood that students initiate reflection on this topic and gain important transferable skills.

KW - Anatomy course

KW - COVID-19

KW - Dissection course

KW - Peer interactions

KW - Reflection on death

KW - Students

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DO - 10.1007/s40670-022-01609-7

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JO - Medical Science Educator

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The Anatomy Course During COVID-19: The Impact of Cadaver-Based Learning on the Initiation of Reflection on Death

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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