Let's 'play' with molecular pharmacology.

Publisher: Wolter Kluwer-Medknow Country of Publication: India NLM ID: 9607101 Publication Model: Print Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1469-5804 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 13576283 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Educ Health (Abingdon) Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: July 2012- : Mumbai : Wolter Kluwer-Medknow
Original Publication: Abingdon, Oxfordshire ; Cambridge, MA : Carfax, c1996-

Education, Medical, Undergraduate/*standards ; Molecular Biology/*education ; Pharmacology/*education ; Students, Medical/*psychology; Anti-Infective Agents/pharmacokinetics ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Education, Medical, Undergraduate/methods ; Humans ; India ; Problem-Based Learning/methods ; Problem-Based Learning/standards ; Role Playing ; Teaching/methods

Background: Understanding concepts of molecular mechanisms of drug action involves sequential visualization of physiological processes and drug effects, a task that can be difficult at an undergraduate level. Role-play is a teaching-learning methodology whereby active participation of students as well as clear visualization of the phenomenon is used to convey complex physiological concepts. However, its use in teaching drug action, a process that demands understanding of a second level of complexity over the physiological process, has not been investigated. We hypothesized that role-play can be an effective and well accepted method for teaching molecular pharmacology.
Methods: In an observational study, students were guided to perform a role-play on a selected topic involving drug activity. Students' gain in knowledge was assessed comparing validated pre- and post-test questionnaires as well as class average normalized gain. The acceptance of role-play among undergraduate medical students was evaluated by Likert scale analysis and thematic analysis of their open-ended written responses.
Results: Significant improvement in knowledge (P < 0.001) was noted in the pre- to post-test knowledge scores, while a high gain in class average normalized score was evident. In Likert scale analysis, most students (93%) expressed that role-play was an acceptable way of teaching. In a thematic analysis, themes of both strengths and weaknesses of the session emerged.
Discussion: Role-play can be effectively utilized while teaching selected topics of molecular pharmacology in undergraduate medical curricula.

0 (Anti-Infective Agents)

Date Created: 20150812 Date Completed: 20160518 Latest Revision: 20150811

20231215

10.4103/1357-6283.161922

26261121