Aims

The British Oncology Network for Undergraduate Societies (BONUS) surveyed students who attended an oncology revision day to determine their views on the current quantity, quality and type of curriculum-based oncology teaching they have experienced.

Materials and methods

Students attending two BONUS revision days received a questionnaire assessing their experience of oncology teaching within the medical curriculum and interest in pursuing a future career in oncology using a 10-point Likert scale. Data were collected with informed consent to be anonymised and used for research. Student demographics and qualitative and quantitative data about experiences of oncology education were analysed.

Results

In total, 451 students registered to attend the revision days. After removal of duplicates, non-responders and non-UK participants, responses from 153 students studying across years 1–6 at 22 UK medical schools were analysed. The mean quantity of oncology lectures students reported receiving was 8.9 hours and the mean quantity of clinic/ward-based oncology teaching was 7.5 hours. Ninety (62.1%) of the 145 students who responded to the relevant question reported that they had received dedicated teaching in oncology. Students who had received dedicated oncology teaching reported a statistically significantly higher mean quality 6.1 (95% confidence interval 5.6–6.5) versus 5.0 (95% confidence interval 4.3–5.5; P = 0.003) and quantity 5.2 (95% confidence interval 4.7–5.6) versus 4.3 (95% confidence interval 3.7–4.9; P = 0.03) of oncology teaching compared with those who had not received this.

Conclusion

Appropriate oncology education is essential for all medical students due to the high prevalence of cancer. All future doctors need the appropriate knowledge and communication skills to care for cancer patients. Our analysis provides quantitative evidence to support the value of specialist oncology teaching within the medical school curriculum in improving student-reported experience. National student-led revision days and events may widen interest in a future career in oncology and aid collaboration between oncology societies. It is important for the general undergraduate medical curriculum to integrate specialty content. An integrated curriculum should facilitate a holistic approach that spans prevention, screening, treatment and palliation rather than being split by subspeciality.

中文翻译：

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医学生对英国本科肿瘤学教育的看法

目标

英国本科生协会肿瘤学网络 (BONUS) 对参加肿瘤学修订日的学生进行了调查，以确定他们对当前所经历的基于课程的肿瘤学教学的数量、质量和类型的看法。

材料和方法

参加两个奖励修订日的学生收到了一份问卷，评估他们在医学课程中的肿瘤学教学经验以及使用 10 点李克特量表追求肿瘤学未来职业的兴趣。在知情同意的情况下收集数据以匿名并用于研究。分析了学生人口统计数据以及关于肿瘤学教育经验的定性和定量数据。

结果

共有 451 名学生报名参加了复习日。在去除重复、无反应者和非英国参与者后，分析了 22 所英国医学院 1-6 年学习的 153 名学生的反应。学生报告接受的肿瘤学讲座的平均数量为 8.9 小时，基于临床/病房的肿瘤学教学的平均数量为 7.5 小时。在回答相关问题的 145 名学生中，有 90 名（62.1%）报告说他们接受了专门的肿瘤学教学。接受专门肿瘤学教学的学生报告的平均质量 6.1（95% 置信区间 5.6-6.5）与 5.0（95% 置信区间 4.3-5.5；P= 0.003) 和数量 5.2 (95% 置信区间 4.7-5.6) 与 4.3 (95% 置信区间 3.7-4.9; P = 0.03) 的肿瘤学教学与未接受过此课程的人相比。

结论

由于癌症的高发病率，适当的肿瘤学教育对所有医学生来说都是必不可少的。所有未来的医生都需要适当的知识和沟通技巧来照顾癌症患者。我们的分析提供了定量证据，以支持医学院课程中专业肿瘤学教学在改善学生报告体验方面的价值。全国学生主导的修订日和活动可能会扩大对未来肿瘤学职业的兴趣，并有助于肿瘤学会之间的合作。对于普通本科医学课程来说，整合专业内容非常重要。综合课程应促进跨越预防、筛查、治疗和缓解的整体方法，而不是按亚专业分开。