New Era University

No. 9 Central Avenue, New Era, Quezon City 1107, Philippines

College of Nursing

Human Cadavers vs. Multimedia Simulation: A Study of

Student Learning in Anatomy

Name of Leader
Samantha Pargad

Assistant Leader
Louie Luzong

MEMBERS
Angela Mallari
Angeline Florentino
Betina Miranday
Eves Nepomuceno
John Loyd Gonzaga
Jasmin Rose Malazarte
Jenny Rose Junio
Joan Claire Garcia
Kristine Laroya
Michelle Lubao
September 11, 2021
1st Semester, S.Y 2021-2022

An Assignment submitted for the Course: CONAPL-18

Anatomy & Physiology

Anatomy is considered one of the cornerstones of health

care education from which clinicians develop their clinical skills. A
deep understanding of anatomy is fundamental for safe clinical
practice for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists,
athletic trainers, and other health related professionals. A solid
understanding of normal anatomy and function enhances students’
ability to recognize how normal structure and function may be
affected when anatomy has been altered as the result of injury or
disease. There have been lot of arguments regarding the use of
Human cadavers and multimedia simulations in teaching anatomy.
Despite the growing popularity of using computer simulation to
help teach college anatomy, students learn much better through
the traditional use of human cadavers, according to new research
that has implications for health care, Cadaveric dissection has
been applied to teach gross anatomy for years all around the
world. It has long been seen as a must for understanding gross
anatomy and a valuable resource to a future professional career. It
supports medical students by helping them understand the three-
dimensional relationship of various anatomical structures and
understand anatomical changes. It has been a highly recognized
fact that excellent medical or surgical practice can be based only
on adequate anatomical knowledge of human anatomy, which can
only be learned at cadaveric dissection.

The claim was supported by Cary Roseth, an associate

professor of educational psychology at Michigan State University.
She said that the study suggests cadaver-based instruction should
continue in undergraduate human anatomy, a gateway course to
medical school, nursing and other health and medical fields.
In order for them to know what develops a student’s thinking
ability, she together with the researchers studied a semester-long
undergraduate anatomy lecture course with 233 students who
were assigned to one of 14 labs. One group of students learned on
a cadaver and was tested on a cadaver. Another group of students
learned on a multimedia learning system and also was tested on a
cadaver. The students were tested on two things: identifying parts
of the body and explaining how they worked. On identification, the
students who learned on a cadaver scored, on average, about 16
percent higher than those who learned on the simulated system.
On explanation, the students who learned on a cadaver scored
about 11 percent higher. In conclusion, results showed that the
human cadaver laboratory offered a significant advantage over the
multimedia simulation program on cadaver-based measures of
identification and explanatory knowledge.

The argument about the use of cadavers in anatomy classes

has mostly focused on the pedagogical value of cadaver dissection
in medical school. The study look into the broader elements of a
body bequest program for gross anatomy teaching and research in
a university environment. Between 1876 and 2009, a retrospective
audit of corpse donation and the utilization of cadaver specimens
for teaching and research at the institution was conducted. Since
its inception in 1943, the body bequest program has received over
40 gifts every year. In addition to the medical program, cadaver
specimens are now used in nine other University degrees and
courses for gross anatomy; four of them are research degrees and
the rest are undergraduate degrees and courses.

Non-university groups have also increased their usage of corpse

specimens in recent years, to the point that there are currently 16
distinct groups employing cadaver specimens for instructional
courses, the majority of which are professional medical courses.
The use of cadavers in research and education might lead to a
more evidence-based approach to clinical anatomy. This one-of-a-
kind audit, which spans over a century of anatomy instruction at a
single University Medical School, demonstrates the value of a
strong body bequest program and the diverse spectrum of
students and health professionals that engage with this valuable
resource.
In addition, studying human cadavers in anatomy was supported
by the study of Miyoshi (2019), findings do suggest that hands-on
sessions will be effective for developing the students' professional
identity if educational support is provided to help them utilize what
they learned through reflection. Their study also implies that
teaching will be more effective if they will be able to experience it.
With the help of this study, it will provide a piece of information that
will support that cadaver dissection is more effective as a teaching
tool than multimedia and simulators. From observations of Fox
(1979) at Cornell Medical School in the 1950s, medical students
developed a ‘scientific’ attitude by successfully managing their
distress in the dissection laboratory. An attitude called “detached
concern” allows students to maintain a balance between caring
and detachment, which is important to psychological well-being in
clinical practice. Students tend to go through stages of dealing with
the cadaver to ultimately attain a scientific attitude toward working
with cadavers (Fox, 1979; Kennedy & Olson, 2009).

To sum it up, it shows that students learn much more

than a simple understanding of the intricacies of the human body,
and all that they learn helps in guiding them to their desired career.
Their time spent in the anatomy laboratory also reminds them of
the softer side of future “doctoring,” including having empathy,
care, and respect. Studying Human Cadaver can be tough but as
time goes by, they will learn how important having a sense of
compassion is to any health profession. In closing, the students’
experiences in the cadaver laboratory are extraordinary. Such
experiences allow them the opportunity for self-realization, and
help guide them in their career decisions, while connecting them
with their colleagues as team members. Their experiences in the
anatomy laboratory provide a unique opportunity to build a strong
foundation personally, socially, and intellectually.

References:

Saltarelli, A. J., Roseth, C. J., & Saltarelli, W. A. (2014). Human

cadavers Vs. multimedia simulation: A study of student learning in
anatomy. Anatomical sciences education, 7(5), 331–339.
https://doi.org/10.1002/ase.1429

Geoffroy, P. J. C. (2017–2019). Variables Influencing Body

Procurement at McGill University, Anatomical Sciences Education.
In J. C. Cornwall (Ed.), The wider importance of cadavers:
Educational and research diversity from a body bequest program
(Revised ed., Vol. 8, pp. 300–369). Mark D. Stringer.

Reifler. D.R. “‘I Actually Don’t Mind the Bone Saw’: Narratives of
Gross Anatomy.” Literature and Medicine 15 (1996): 183–199.
Robbins, B. D., Tomaka, A., Innus, C., Patterson, J., Styn G.
“Lessons from the dead: the experiences of undergraduates
working with cadavers.” OMEGA 58 (2008): 177–192.

Winkelmann, A. & Guldner. F.H. “Cadavers as teachers: the

dissecting room experience in Thailand.” British Medical Journal
329 (2004): 1455–1457.

Michigan State University. (2014, October 16). Cadavers beat

computers for learning anatomy. ScienceDaily. Retrieved
September 3, 2021
www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141016123622.htm