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Background: Clinical reasoning (CR) is fundamental in medical education. However, the Italian curriculum has not incorporated a structured CR format yet. Therefore, we introduced the Clinical Case Discussions (CCD), to medical students attending the University of Bologna as a tool for developing CR abilities. CCDs are a case-based peer-teaching format, simulating the diagnostic process using published patient cases. Methods: Students of all clinical years of the University of Bologna Medical School were invited to voluntarily participate in a two-day CCD training program. They completed pre- and post-training questionnaires assessing their expectations before and impressions after the training and comparing learning outcomes to their usual classes. Results: Twenty-one students participated in this pilot program. Before the training, more than half of the participants expressed either interest or a strong interest in all proposed learning objectives. Afterward, 84.6% of the students stated that the training much exceeded (63.5%) or exceeded (23.1%) their expectations considering its utility for their future medical activities. A total of 92.3% strongly agreed (84.6%) or agreed (7.7%) to have improved their CR. Conclusions: Although this pilot program had some intrinsic limitations, the students’ positive feedback on this CCD format (combining the benefits of case-based learning and peer teaching) encourages further research on its potential role in the Italian curriculum.

Abstract Background The medical case vignette has long been used in medical student education and frequently includes demographic variables such as race, ethnicity and gender. However, inclusion of demographic variables without context may reinforce assumptions and biases. Yet, the absence of race, sexual orientation, and social determinants of health may reinforce a hidden curriculum that reflects cultural blindness. This replication study compared proportions of race, ethnicity, and gender with University of Minnesota (UMN) findings. This study sought to determine if there has been progress in the representation of demographic characteristics in case vignettes. Methods: University of North Carolina (UNC) case vignettes from 2015–2016 were analyzed and compared to UMN case vignettes from 1996–1998. Data included mentions of race, ethnicity, gender and social determinants of health. Results: In the 278 UNC vignettes, white race was noted in 19.7% of cases, black race was in 7.9% cases, and 76.6% of cases were unspecified. In the 983 UMN vignettes, white race was recorded in 2.85% cases, and black race in 0.41% cases. The institutions were significantly different in the proportion of their cases depicting race (0.20; 95% CI (0.15, 0.25)). Males were represented in the majority of vignettes. Discussion: Comparing case vignettes results from two medical schools suggests that reporting explicit demographic diversity was not significantly different. The findings illustrate that sex was the demographic characteristic consistently described, where males were over-represented. Based on these findings, greater cultural diversity as it intersects with social determinants of health is needed in medical student education.

Background: The medical case vignette has long been used in medical student education and frequently includes demographic variables such as race, ethnicity and gender. However, inclusion of demographic variables without context may reinforce assumptions and biases. Yet, the absence of race, sexual orientation, and social determinants of health may reinforce a hidden curriculum that reflects cultural blindness. This replication study compared proportions of race, ethnicity, and gender with University of Minnesota (UMN) findings. This study sought to determine if there has been progress in the representation of demographic characteristics in case vignettes. Methods: University of North Carolina (UNC) case vignettes from 2015–2016 were analyzed and compared to UMN case vignettes from 1996–1998. Data included mentions of race, ethnicity, gender and social determinants of health. Results: In the 278 UNC vignettes, white race was noted in 19.7% of cases, black race was in 7.9% cases, and 76.6% of cases were unspecified. In the 983 UMN vignettes, white race was recorded in 2.85% cases, and black race in 0.41% cases. The institutions were significantly different in the proportion of their cases depicting race (0.20; 95% CI (0.15, 0.25)). Males were represented in the majority of vignettes. Discussion: Comparing case vignettes results from two medical schools suggests that reporting explicit demographic diversity was not significantly different. The findings illustrate that sex was the demographic characteristic consistently described, where males were over-represented. Based on these findings, greater cultural diversity as it intersects with social determinants of health is needed in medical student education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]