Reimagining anatomy core competency: A multimodal research approach

Syarifah Aisyah Syed Abd Halim^1,2, Muhamad Saiful Bahri Yusoff², Mohamad Nurman Yaman³, Tg Fatimah Murniwati Tg Muda⁴, Ramiza Ramza Ramli⁵, Fairrul Masnah Kadir⁶, Siti Nurma Hanim Hadie⁷

¹Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; ²Department of Medical Education, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, Malaysia; ³Department of Medical Education, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; ⁴Anatomy unit, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Terengganu, Malaysia; ⁵Department of Otorhinolaryngology, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, Malaysia; ⁶Department of Emergency Department, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Sabah, Malaysia;⁷Department of Anatomy, School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, Malaysia

Objective: Anatomy knowledge is crucial for safe clinical practice, but core elements of anatomy competencies remain largely unexamined. This study explored the anatomy competency elements that are required for efficient clinical practice.
Methods: This two-phased study applied a multimodal research approach. The first (Consulting) phase involved exploration of the competency elements through standard referral documents, a scoping review of published literatures, and stakeholders’ engagement— involving 60 medical students and doctors—via in-depth interview and focus group discussion. The second (Profiling) phase examined the importance of the identified elements in a workshop involving anatomy lecturers and clinicians from 11 public medical schools in Malaysia.
Results: This study unearthed four cognitive (i.e. mastery of anatomy core knowledge; basic and clinical application of anatomy knowledge; integration of anatomy concept with basic sciences and clinical input; and translation of anatomy knowledge); four psychomotor (i.e., identification of anatomical structures; three-dimensional visualisation of anatomical structures; kinaesthetic appreciation of anatomical structures; and performance of anatomy-related clinical skills); five affective (i.e. valuing the importance of clinical application of anatomy; valuing learning activities through commitment, and perseverance; organising professional ethical standards in anatomy education; organising learning behaviours for collaborative learning; internalising social and emotional values related to body donation and dissection-based environment), and three intrapersonal skills (i.e., self-regulated learning; digital skill; and self-reflection and introspection skills) competencies. Each competency outlines functional elements that were rated to be important for safe clinical practice.
Conclusion: These core competencies are useful for designing a lean competency-driven anatomy curriculum in medical schools.

Keywords: anatomy core competency; anatomy education; competency-based education; safe clinical practice.