Web-Based Concept Indexing Tool For Online Content Management Of Medical School Curriculum - Dissecting An Anatomy Course Experience.

Abstract

A traditional medical school curriculum consists of a large amount of information presented by a large number of faculty. Faced with a growing and evolving flood of information, medical educators require and seek assistance to manage this knowledge base. Between the fall of 2001 and summer of 2002, researchers and educators at the Vanderbilt University Department of Biomedical Informatics have constructed KnowledgeMap (KM), a web-based knowledge management tool to support medical instruction at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. The KM “knowledge store” contains all curricular documents in a searchable database. The KM interface makes available online this information to students, faculty members, and administrators. This thesis analyzes the use of KM during its pilot implementation in the first year medical school anatomy course during the fall of 2002.Data was collected from first year medical students and the anatomy course faculty through server log files, a survey, and interviews. The data revealed that students have utilized the system near unanimously and that the majority of them have expressed satisfaction with the system. Computer proficiency and test anxiety were identified as factors affecting the adoption of the system. The study addressed issues relating to both students and faculty that arise from the use KM. They include student time constraints and learning styles, class attendance, intellectual property concerns, communication among faculty, and the properties of hypermedia as a medium for instruction at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.