Improving medical student recruitment into neurosurgery through teaching reform

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine whether a combination of case-based learning (CBL) and problem-based learning (PBL) methods in teaching can improve the academic performance and recruitment of medical students for neurosurgery. METHODS: Four classes of fourth-year medical students were randomly divided into two groups. The traditional model group received the traditional teaching method, and the CBL-PBL group received the combined teaching methods of CBL and PBL. After the courses, the differences between the two groups in self-perceived competence, satisfaction with the course, post-class test scores, and clinical practice abilities were compared, and the proportions of neurosurgery major selection in pre- and post-curriculum between the two groups were also analyzed. RESULTS: Self-perceived competence, post-class test scores, and clinical practice abilities in the CBL-PBL group were better than those in the traditional model group. The students in the CBL-PBL group showed a higher degree of satisfaction with the course than those in the traditional model group (χ2 = 12.03, P = 0.007). At the end of the semester, the proportion of students who chose neurosurgery majors in the CBL-PBL group was 13.3%, more than the 3.4% in the traditional model group (χ2 = 3.93, P = 0.048). CONCLUSION: Compared with the traditional teaching method, the CBL and PBL integrated method is more effective for improving the performance of medical students and enhancing their clinical capabilities in neurosurgery teaching. The CBL-PBL method effectively improved students’ interests in neurosurgery, potentially contributing to increasing medical student recruitment into neurosurgery. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12909-022-03722-y.