Student-Driven Anatomy: A Practical Guide to Enhancing Learning through Extracurricular Dissection

Abstract

Many modern medical school curricula have deemphasized the study of anatomy, dedicating significantly less curricular time to student dissection of human bodies and relying instead on other resources, including digital anatomy softwares. Extracurricular student-led dissections allow learners to develop a deeper understanding of the human body, practice surgical skills, and explore clinical interests. We here provide learners and anatomy educators with practical strategies to organize and execute efficient student-led dissections. The authors include senior medical students, anatomy faculty, and clinical instructors at Harvard Medical School with experience in facilitating student-led dissections. Based on our own experience with this approach, and within the background of current developments in anatomy education, we provided ten recommendations for creating a student-led anatomy learning experience. Priorities include understanding student goals, utilizing near-peer teachers, integrating case-based clinical data, partnering with specialty interest groups, and encouraging student independence. Medical students involved in student-led dissections have offered positive feedback with regard to clinical skills, retention of anatomy, and specialty discernment. Future research should gather both students' subjective perceptions of dissection and objective learning outcomes to quantify the impact of student-led study of anatomy.

Keywords: Anatomy; dissection; extracurricular; medical education; near-peer teaching.