Effect of small group discussion in residency education versus conventional education

There are various methods of training for medical students in different colleges.
Fast knowledge transfer and maximum learning are the main goals of education. Due to the
limited time and also high volume of content knowledge during residency, using the best
methods of training can play an important role in enhancing the skills of residents. In the current
study, small group discussion as a teaching method was compared with the traditional method.
Methods: In this cohort study, two groups of residents that had fnished a 4-year course of
orthopedic residency training programs in Tabriz and Urmia universities of medical sciences
was being examined. They were divided in two groups. In order to compare the impact of the
training on residents, it was compared with the result of the State Board standardized exam. The
number of residents passing the written test and the Objective Structural Clinical Examination
(OSCE) per year have been identifed and compared with the groups under investigation.
Results: Fifty-one residents, including 4 women (7.8%) and 47 men (92.2%), were studied for
this purpose. Success rate for the small group discussion in the written exam was 59.2% and
in the OSCE was 24% (95% CI). On the other hand, the success rates for the group who were
trained in the traditional way were 37% and 16.6% in the written exam and OSCE, respectively.
In both cases the differences were signifcant.
Conclusion: The small group discussion method is an effective method in residency training
in surgical felds that increases medical students’ learning abilities compared to traditional
methods of education