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An efficient teacher needs to communicate effectively with the audience, which in turn largely depends on an engaging presentation. The goal of any presentation is to inform, entertain, persuade or inspire and academic presentations primarily provide information, as in a classroom lecture or in a conference research paper. The department of medical education at our institute has been conducting the 'National course on educational sciences for teachers of health professionals' since last four decades. Since 2015, newer learner engagement strategies (LES) were incorporated into the program. We analysed the feedback data from participants with an aim to understand the impact of implementation of LES in the course. Literature was further explored to identify other LES in practice. We collected data of five national courses conducted during 2018 to 2020 at our Institute. The in-campus national faculty development course, which is spread over 6 days, consists of about 42 sessions involving nearly 28 presentations. One hundred thirty-five (n=135) participants from all over India had participated in this course during the period under review. Newer strategies must be used to engage new generation of learners during presentations. The best way to engage learners is by having an interactive presentation with a structured narrative that holds their attention and allows them to participate in the presentation process. Medical teachers should make themselves familiar with digital tools which help in interactive teaching. Further prospective research studies need to be carried out to understand outcomes and improve strategies of learner engagement.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, students' right to education has been threatened globally, and medical colleges are not an exception to this. During COVID-19 induced lockdown, medical colleges had to resort to online classes instead of regular academic sessions. Medical colleges and other higher education institutions in India faced a challenge in determining on how to engage their students in the learning process and assess them using reliable, effective and acceptable methods. Now that the COVID pandemic is nearly over, many medical colleges have already started regular sessions. At the same time, some continue to use online lectures and other tools for engaging their learners in addition to regular classes. Medical colleges also used different online tools for formative assessments. But the effectiveness of such online educational activities is yet to be established in India. This article discusses how unsupervised online tests can be used for formative and summative exams in post-COVID medical education.

The article discusses the challenges and complexities of congenital anomalies of the hand and proposes a novel grading system called the Hand Anomalies and Deformity (HAnD) grading system. This system aims to assist healthcare providers in categorizing hand anomalies, communicating with patients, planning treatment strategies, and setting realistic expectations for outcomes. The grading system classifies anomalies on a scale from I (mild) to IV (profound), with grade III further divided into A and B subcategories for complexity and associated syndromes. The system emphasizes function, considers associated syndromes, and focuses on treatment feasibility. [Extracted from the article]

Introduction: Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is a locally invasive, slowly spreading tumor arising in the basal layer of epidermis and rarely metastasizes. Surgical excision with adequate margins is curative. Reconstruction of post-excisional defects on the face is both essential and challenging. Clinical Cases and Methods: A retrospective review of hospital records for patients operated for BCC of the face excluding the pinna at our institute in the last 3 years was done and a review of the literature was carried out to identify the most common principles governing the optimal reconstruction of post-excisional defects on the face. Literature search was made in Embase, Medline, and Cochrane databases in the last two decades with the filters placed for human and English language studies with the search terms (Facial Basal cell carcinoma) AND reconstruction AND (Humans[Mesh]). Results: Records of 32 patients with facial BCC who underwent excision and reconstruction at our hospital were identified and details were recorded. Our literature search with the terms and filters mentioned above revealed 244 studies with duplicates removed. After further hand-searching, 218 journal articles were identified, reviewed, and a reconstruction algorithm was designed based on the findings. Discussion: Reconstruction of post-BCC excisional defects of the face relies on an adequate understanding of the general principles of reconstruction, subunit principle of facial esthetics, flap anatomy and vascularity as well as operator experience. Complex defects need innovative solutions, multidisciplinary approaches, and newer methods of reconstruction like perforator flaps and newer techniques like supermicrosurgery. Conclusion: Multiple reconstructive options for post-excisional defects of the BCC over the face are available and most defects can be approached in an algorithmic manner. Further well-designed prospective research studies are needed to compare outcomes of different reconstructive options for a given defect and identify the most suitable options. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cleft lip and palate (CLP) affect about one baby of every 700 newborn due to alterations in the normal development of the primary and/or secondary palate. The prevalence of clefts in India is between 27,000 and 33,000/year. Searches were undertaken in PubMed, Cochrane database, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases, for primary research studies that report on feeding interventions/feeding techniques/feeding methods, challenges faced by mother/care taker/health personnel as they include most of the publications in this area. Papers were independently reviewed by two authors and Thomas et al's assessment criteria checklist (2003) was used to assess the methodological quality. This systematic review was registered in PROSPERO under number CRD42020208437. The review included 25 studies: 21 quantitative, 2 qualitative, and two mixed methods study, involving 1564 infants and children (age ranging from 1 week to 5 years old) and 790 mothers of Infants with CLP from 13 countries. While comparing the efficacy of the three feeding techniques such as paladai fed, bottle fed, and spoon fed in improving the weight gain pattern the result showed mean weight gain among paladai feeding was better than the bottle or spoon-feeding. Common feeding problems observed were nasal regurgitation, vomiting, and choking, etc. Infants with cleft palate had some major challenges such as aspiration, choking, and inadequate growth. Beyond the esthetic and psychologic implications of the presence of orofacial clefts, the feeding of the child is usually the next concern of the parents and caregivers, a factor which can result in considerable stress to the mother. A prompt diagnosis, especially of a CP, and visit by the cleft team immediately after the birth so that the family can be supported and taught the skills of feeding, is essential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]