Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0009-0004-2720-0675
Abstract
Background: The National Medical Council in the Indian Medical Graduate guidelines to enhance learning, recommends Vertical and Horizontal Integration. Vertical integration may be defined as a curricular strategy that aligns para-clinical and clinical teaching across time with a view to enhancing relevance and application of knowledge. The present study is an attempt to test whether vertical integration of Forensic Medicine and Psychiatry is associated with greater short-term learning gains and improved student perceptions compared with conventional didactic lectures.
Methods: With Institutional and Ethics Committee clearance, a two-phase quasi-experimental study was performed across two consecutive academic cohorts (Phase 1, 2024; Phase 2, 2025) of MBBS Phase-3 students at a tertiary medical college in South India. Phase-1 students (conventional format, n = 160) received sequential discipline-specific lectures; Phase-2 students (vertical integration, n = 156) received a co-delivered integrated session covering the same topic (“Civil and Criminal Responsibility of the Mentally Ill”). A pilot-tested, expert-validated 18-item MCQ questionnaire (pilot n = 25; pilot Cronbach’s α = 0.78) and a 5-item Likert feedback questionnaire were administered pre- and post-session. Tests were scored 1 = correct, 0 = incorrect (total out of 18). Paired pre–post changes were assessed by Wilcoxon signed-rank test; item changes were tested by McNemar’s test. Internal consistency for study data was computed (Cronbach’s α). Significance threshold p < 0.05.
Results: The statistical analysis showed a mean gain of +4.95 in knowledge and performance of the group exposed to conventional teaching methodology and a mean gain of +6.52 in the group exposed to integrated teaching methodology. Both the gains were statistically significant. The integrated session produced a greater mean gain than conventional format (difference in mean gains = 1.57 points). Item-level McNemar testing identified significant post-session gains in 9 of 18 items following integration (notably Q3, Q5, Q9, Q11, Q13, Q17, Q18). 85.6% of the students preferred the integrated session.
Conclusions: Vertical integration of Forensic Medicine and Psychiatry resulted in significantly higher short-term learning gains and was strongly favored by students. Implementation of shared, case-based integrated teaching is recommended within CBME to enhance applied learning and student engagement.
Publication Date
2025
Publisher
JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interests.
Keywords
Indian Medical Graduate Training, Competency-based Medical Education, Integrated Teaching, Forensic Medicine, Psychiatry, Undergraduate Medical Education
Word Count
2079
Recommended Citation
Mehta P, Sharma Y, M K, M A.
Evaluating the efficacy of Vertical Integration in training undergraduate medical students under Competency Based Medical Education Curriculum.
Digital Journal of Clinical Medicine.
2025;
8(1):
-.
doi:
https://doi.org/10.55691/2582-3868.1287
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Cover Page Footnote
Pratham Mehta¹, Yashika Sharma¹ Arun M.², Kishor M.³ ¹ JSS Medical College, JSSAHER, Mysuru, India ² Department of Forensic Medicine, JSS Medical College, JSSAHER, Mysuru, India ³ Department of Psychiatry, JSS Medical College, JSSAHER, Mysuru, India
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Comments
Original research article titled ‘Evaluating the efficacy of Vertical Integration in training undergraduate medical students under Competency Based Medical Education Curriculum’, highlights improved learning outcomes and student engagement through vertically integrated teaching methods that strengthens the foundation of CBME.