| dc.description.abstract | Background: Mental health care is limited worldwide, especially for children and adolescents. In Japan, one in five children has a mental health problem. However, there are barriers to using mental health services for children and adolescents, including a shortage of standardized training programs and the subsequent workforce. Therefore, there is a need to train professionals in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP). Nagoya University (NU), Japan adapted Problem Based Learning (PBL) to enhance standardized medical education about CAP. This study aims to evaluate CAP studies at NU, with a focus on developed PBL materials under the Trondheim-Nagoya (TroNA) project.
Design and methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at NU with a questionnaire developed by NU and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). To compare PBL CAP delivered online with PBL CAP carried out in person at NU, the identical questionnaire was used both in 2019 and 2021. The questionnaire measuring students' perceptions and understanding of the PBL curriculum and PBL in CAP consisted of 15 questions using a three-point Likert scale. There were three categories of questions: NU medical students' general impression of PBL, PBL in CAP, and about specific case scenarios in PBL.
Results: The majority of medical students in both in-person (82.5%) and online (91.2%) classes agreed that PBL helped them develop clinical problem-solving skills. In addition, 53.6% of students in in-person class and 75.8% of students in online class thought PBL enhanced their understanding of CAP. In terms of specific case scenarios, many students in the in-person class (59.8%) and online class (74.7%) agreed that the case helped them understand the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in CAP. In both in-person (r=0.731, p<0.001) and online (r=0.795, p<0.001) class questionnaires, the question category about PBL in CAP and the category about specific case scenarios showed a strong correlation.
Conclusion: Most of the NU medical students were generally satisfied with CAP's PBL curriculum. The online PBL CAP curriculum with specific case scenarios can provide medical students with suitable educational means. This study can be a cornerstone for establishing plans for future online PBL education in CAP and making plans to attract more future doctors to CAP. | |