Response to ‘Is the keyboard mightier than the pen?’ Hannah Beckwith, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, UK
I
am grateful for the comments on my article from Katarey and Francis.1 I agree of course that technology is vitally important in the classroom; however, my article was purely an opinion on the difficulties faced by a trainee educator confronted by a physical barrier when delivering a tutorial to a group of students. Technology-assisted learning is a rapidly advancing area, and one that when used
appropriately can complement and enhance traditional learning methods. Accessing real-time supplementary information to aid learning can be beneficial; however, surfing the Internet at the expense of face-to-face teaching, and the loss of interaction between tutor and peers offline, without barriers, can be a negative consequence. Care must also be taken to ensure that learners are able to critically appraise the information
sourced. Part of our increasing role as educators will be to ensure that learners are guided to accurate and reliable online resources, and to ensure that the critical appraisal of Internet sources is integrated into our medical curricula. REFERENCE 1.
Katarey D, Francis I. Is the keyboard mightier than the pen? Clin Teach 2014;11:321.
Corresponding author’s contact details: Dr Hannah Beckwith, Department of Medicine, Imperial College, London, UK. E-mail: hannah.k.s.beckwith@ gmail.com doi: 10.1111/tct.12243
Teaching ultrasound in a developing country Amit Parekh, The Billy Riordan Memorial Clinic, Cape Maclear, Malawi
O
ver the last few decades, computed tomography (CT) has superseded ultrasound as the radiological investigation of choice in most cases. However, in developing countries where cross-sectional imaging is often not available, ultrasound continues to be a powerful diagnostic tool. This is supported by my own experience as a radiology registrar working in a rural clinic in Malawi, where I have used
general abdominal ultrasound to diagnose tuberculosis and cancer. Your recent article about introducing general ultrasound training to junior doctors is therefore most relevant to medicine in the developing world.1 Introducing such training for doctors at our clinic may prove to be difficult, however. Ultrasound is operator dependent, and the diagnostic quality of the images
obtained depends on the operator’s skill of using the ultrasound machine and their knowledge of radiological anatomy.2 To achieve these competencies, operators need regular opportunities to scan patients, with exposure to a wide range of cases.3 This is not feasible in our busy clinic where doctors often see 40 patients in one morning, and therefore don’t have the time to learn ultrasound ‘on the job’.
322 © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2014; 11: 321–323
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One solution to this problem is to teach ultrasound as a quick, focused examination to look for specific, easily identifiable abnormalities (e.g. pleural effusions). These focused skills could be taught as a short course with a final evaluation to assess competence. This may encourage more widespread use of ultrasound as
an adjunct to clinical assessment, both in our clinic and in the wider developing world. REFERENCES 1.
Lad M, Duncan S, Patten D, Shreeve N, Webber M. The utility of teaching ultrasonography. Clin Teach 2013;10:423–424.
2.
Adam A, Dixon AK. Diagnostic Radiology: A Textbook of Medical Imaging. 5th edn. London: Churchill Livingstone; 2008.
3.
Education Board of the Faculty of Clinical Radiology, The Royal College of Radiologists. Structured Training Curriculum for Clinical Radiology. London: The Royal College of Radiologists; 2007.
Corresponding author’s contact details: Dr Amit Parekh, Department of Radiology, Bristol Royal Infirmary, Upper Maudlin Street, Bristol, BS2 8HW, UK. E-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1111/tct.12242
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2014; 11: 321–323 323
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I
am grateful for the comments on my article from Katarey and Francis.1 I agree of course that technology is vitally important in the classroom; however, my article was purely an opinion on the difficulties faced by a trainee educator confronted by a physical barrier when delivering a tutorial to a group of students. Technology-assisted learning is a rapidly advancing area, and one that when used
appropriately can complement and enhance traditional learning methods. Accessing real-time supplementary information to aid learning can be beneficial; however, surfing the Internet at the expense of face-to-face teaching, and the loss of interaction between tutor and peers offline, without barriers, can be a negative consequence. Care must also be taken to ensure that learners are able to critically appraise the information
sourced. Part of our increasing role as educators will be to ensure that learners are guided to accurate and reliable online resources, and to ensure that the critical appraisal of Internet sources is integrated into our medical curricula. REFERENCE 1.
Katarey D, Francis I. Is the keyboard mightier than the pen? Clin Teach 2014;11:321.
Corresponding author’s contact details: Dr Hannah Beckwith, Department of Medicine, Imperial College, London, UK. E-mail: hannah.k.s.beckwith@ gmail.com doi: 10.1111/tct.12243
Teaching ultrasound in a developing country Amit Parekh, The Billy Riordan Memorial Clinic, Cape Maclear, Malawi
O
ver the last few decades, computed tomography (CT) has superseded ultrasound as the radiological investigation of choice in most cases. However, in developing countries where cross-sectional imaging is often not available, ultrasound continues to be a powerful diagnostic tool. This is supported by my own experience as a radiology registrar working in a rural clinic in Malawi, where I have used
general abdominal ultrasound to diagnose tuberculosis and cancer. Your recent article about introducing general ultrasound training to junior doctors is therefore most relevant to medicine in the developing world.1 Introducing such training for doctors at our clinic may prove to be difficult, however. Ultrasound is operator dependent, and the diagnostic quality of the images
obtained depends on the operator’s skill of using the ultrasound machine and their knowledge of radiological anatomy.2 To achieve these competencies, operators need regular opportunities to scan patients, with exposure to a wide range of cases.3 This is not feasible in our busy clinic where doctors often see 40 patients in one morning, and therefore don’t have the time to learn ultrasound ‘on the job’.
322 © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2014; 11: 321–323
tct_12241.indd 322
6/2/2014 1:33:14 PM
One solution to this problem is to teach ultrasound as a quick, focused examination to look for specific, easily identifiable abnormalities (e.g. pleural effusions). These focused skills could be taught as a short course with a final evaluation to assess competence. This may encourage more widespread use of ultrasound as
an adjunct to clinical assessment, both in our clinic and in the wider developing world. REFERENCES 1.
Lad M, Duncan S, Patten D, Shreeve N, Webber M. The utility of teaching ultrasonography. Clin Teach 2013;10:423–424.
2.
Adam A, Dixon AK. Diagnostic Radiology: A Textbook of Medical Imaging. 5th edn. London: Churchill Livingstone; 2008.
3.
Education Board of the Faculty of Clinical Radiology, The Royal College of Radiologists. Structured Training Curriculum for Clinical Radiology. London: The Royal College of Radiologists; 2007.
Corresponding author’s contact details: Dr Amit Parekh, Department of Radiology, Bristol Royal Infirmary, Upper Maudlin Street, Bristol, BS2 8HW, UK. E-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1111/tct.12242
© 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. THE CLINICAL TEACHER 2014; 11: 321–323 323
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6/2/2014 1:33:14 PM
