Does basic science knowledge correlate with clinical reasoning in assessments of first-year medical students?

摘要

Previous research has investigated the outcomes of Problem-based Learning (PBL), but little research has compared competencies in PBL and associated clinical reasoning skills with other competencies in medical education. We used results from formative and summative exams during the first block of medical education to investigate how the performance of beginning, undergraduate medical students on online clinical cases and additional clinical-reasoning questions related to their basic-science knowledge. We found a moderate correlation between clinical-reasoning and basic-science performance. However, the level of correlation suggests that distinct knowledge and skills are involved in clinical reasoning beyond those associated with basic-science knowledge.