Attitudes of Medical Students from the Faculty of Medicine, Vajira Hospital, Navamindradhiraj University, Toward Cadaveric Dissection

Abstract

Objective The objective of the current study is to assess the attitudes of first-, second- and thirdyear medical students in preclinical years at Navamindradhiraj University toward embalmed cadaveric dissection. In response to the recent increase in adoption of the virtual 3D cadaver technique for interactive anatomy education, the university plans to adopt this practice for future teaching using own staff. Thus, it is necessary to collect feedbacks from current medical students to make an informed decision for an effective curriculum review.

Method A questionnaire instrument was used to collect data from 195 students across the three years toward embalmed cadaveric dissection. The question focused on students’ reactions, concerns, coping strategies as well as their response to teaching methods.

Result There were significant differences (P<0.05) among different academic year of medical students. For the first year students, scared and anxiety were found to be significantly higher than those of the second- and third-year students. Further, differences were pronounced between male and female students. Female students demonstrated that more concerns about genitalia than male students (p<0.05). The most frequent reactions among students to dissection were those of dizziness 18.82% and recurring images of cadavers 12.16%. The most frequent method of coping with stress was through rationalization 27.07%. In term of responses to current teaching methods, the overall rating of dissection (4.34±0.79) was found to be significantly higher than through the use of textbooks (4.04±0.89) and prosection (3.98±0.85) (p<0.001).

Conclusion While results of the study indicate that active dissection remains a popular activity among medical students, they nevertheless require psychological preparation prior to such engagement.