Problem‐based learning in clinical medicine

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Abstract
Background: The primary mission of the University of Alabama School of Medicine—Tuscaloosa is the education of medical students and family medicine residents. Problem‐based learning (PBL) was identified as an alternative strategy to achieve this mission. Description: This article discusses the evolution of this modified curriculum in clinical medicine which utilizes “real patient on paper”; scenarios and “real‐time‐real‐patient”; encounters. Obstacles that are unique to the clinical environment are identified, and experiences are shared regarding how these were partially overcome. Evaluation: The curriculum was evaluated by subjective feedback from students, review of learning issue logs, and comparison of subjective and objective scores prior to curriculum modification and subsequently. Conclusions: PBL strategies are well suited to clinical education provided that the faculty are committed to this methodology. In our curriculum, it appears to foster the development of life‐long learning skills and to provide additional breadth and depth in learning opportunities.

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