Estrategia didáctica con estudios de casos para el desarrollo del razonamiento clínico en estudiantes de Medicina. Estudio preliminar

Introduction

Clinical reasoning is developed by complementing what is learned with theoretical information and what the student experiences with their patients. The present study aims to evaluate whether teaching in clinical case construction enhances the acquisition of clinical reasoning skills in medical students.

Methods

Forty-eight medical students were included. All of them were instructed in a theoretical and practical class on how to construct an examination of standardized clinical cases. Subsequently, they were divided into two groups of 24 students, each considering their academic degrees. Group A was instructed to construct five clinical cases, and group B was instructed to analyze five existing clinical cases. A final evaluation was conducted with ten standardized clinical cases prepared by teaching researchers, comparing three criteria: correct answers, grade obtained, and performance.

Two months later, they were evaluated before clinical case stations with simulated patients, and their performance and clinical reasoning were evaluated. The groups were compared using the student's t-test of independent groups.

Results

In group A, in the case exam, a more significant number of correct answers, better grades, and better performance were obtained. About the CR, the students in group A evaluated better diagnostic accuracy, data correlation, organization of information, and diagnostic elaboration.

Conclusion

The construction of clinical cases by the student himself helps to develop his clinical reasoning and, therefore, can be used as a teaching strategy.