The hybrid model of clinical skills teaching and the learning theories behind it

INTRODUCTION: There are two popular methods of clinical skills teaching. One is Peyton’s method, and the other one is Robert Gagne’s method. A hybrid model which is a combination of both teaching methods is developed and implemented at Avalon University School of Medicine in Clinical Skills. The aim of the study was to evaluate the hybrid model of clinical skills teaching. METHODS: This is a quasi-experimental study where a control group with a sample size of 26 was compared with two study groups; one group included 24 participants, and as the other one consisting of 16 subjects selected without randomization. All students in the class were included in the study, except for those withdrew voluntarily. The quantitative data were gathered in the form of a questionnaire on the Likert scale which was collected as the end of course evaluations. The quantitative data for the responses on the Likert scale was analyzed for descriptive statistics: Mean, Median, and Mode. The quantitative data also included the students’ performance on assessments of clinical skills which was analyzed using ANOVA test. The qualitative data were gathered in the form of open-ended questions in the end of course evaluations. The qualitative data were also collected from the faculty members who were the examiners for the clinical skills course as the feedback taken from them. RESULTS: There was a significant improvement in the feedback of students (end of course evaluations) after implementing the hybrid model of clinical skills teaching which was shown by increased Mean, Median, Mode for the most pointers on the Likert scale. Also, there was a notable improvement in the performance of students with a significant p-value (p<0.05) on ANOVA test. CONCLUSION: The hybrid model is very effective in teaching clinical skills. This teaching method can be evaluated by replicating this study at larger institutions with more number of students.