LKCMedicine Anatomy & Physiology Workshop for Pre-U students

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It is the June school holidays, but that did not deter some Pre-University students from attending the inaugural LKCMedicine Anatomy & Physiology Workshop. The two-day workshop which began on 17 June, drew 90 students from 20 institutions in Singapore.  

Students had hands-on interactive sessions and practical demonstrations that looked into the structure and function of the human body, particularly the cardiorespiratory (day one) and gastrointestinal (day two) systems. They learnt by tapping on LKCMedicine's innovative teaching tools and cutting-edge learning facilities.

Day One

In his opening remarks, LKCMedicine Dean Professor James Best said this is the first time the School has organised the workshop and hope students will benefit from it. While anatomy and physiology – the themes for the workshop – are taught as separate disciplines, Prof Best noted that they are important in the field of science and medicine.

"Anatomy and physiology remain the basis of knowledge underpinning medicine. So it's absolutely critical if you want to enter medicine or any other branch of health profession," he added.

After Prof Best's opening remarks, students headed for a hands-on practical session on cardiorespiratory system at the Anatomy Learning Centre. The session was conducted by LKCMedicine's Head of Anatomy Assistant Professor Sreenivasulu Reddy Mogali, Senior Lecturer, Anatomy Dr Ranganath Vallabhajosyula and Senior Lecturer, Medical Education Dr Lucy Rosby.

Anglo-Chinese Junior College second-year student Myra Shan felt that the practical session was an eye-opener to LKCMedicine's teaching methods. "It's very interesting and enriching because LKCMedicine uses actual 3D models to show us the different structures (of the human body) and help us understand the human body better. It's just easier to learn as well," she added.

The practical session was followed by lunch, where students viewed the Scholarly Projects Poster Showcase. After lunch, they attended a Team-Based Learning (TBL) Session on Cardiorespiratory System led by LKCMedicine Assistant Dean, Educational Development and Senior Lecturer, Medical Education, Dr Preman Rajalingam.

Ethan Goh, who is currently in his final year at Nanyang Polytechnic pursuing a Diploma in Molecular Biotechnology, said he found the TBL session to be intriguing. "I found it quite entertaining and enjoyable, because it's a unique twist on how I will usually learn. Usually the lecturers would talk and go on and on, but we have this Team-Based Learning session which I found very interesting because it gave us a chance to interact with one another and discuss our answers," he added. 

Day Two

The second day of the workshop began with a hands-on practical session on the gastrointestinal system at the Anatomy Learning Centre. The session was conducted by LKCMedicine clinical teachers Lead (Radiology) Adjunct Associate Professor Gerald Tan and LKCMedicine Content Expert Adj Assoc Prof Ashutosh.

Singapore Sports School International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) student Alena Dang said she was able to observe the human anatomy "live" using ultrasound. 

"I found it quite cool because we wouldn't be able to do it without any license, so I found it very interesting," she added.

Likewise, Temasek Polytechnic second-year student Xavier Tan said he enjoyed the hands-on practical session.

"The session at the Anatomy Learning Centre is pretty good as I was able to see plastinated specimens upclose. This allowed me to see the intricate structure of the human body and I have learnt a lot, so I am honoured to have taken part in this workshop," said Xavier, who is pursuing a Diploma in Biomedical Science.

After the hands-on practical session, students were treated to lunch and viewed the Scholarly Project Poster showcase. The students then attended a Team-Based Learning Session on the Gastrointestinal System run by Dr Preman in the afternoon. 

Victoria Junior College second-year student Areeba Tariq said the TBL session was useful and enjoyable. "There is a burning question section during the TBL that allows us to clarify questions with the teachers. I feel that this is quite good, as it allows us to learn more," she added. 

The two-day workshop concluded with a closing address by LKCMedicine Vice-Dean (Education) Professor Naomi Low-Beer. Students were also given a certificate of participation for attending the workshop.

Addressing students at the Learning Studio, Prof Low-Beer said she is impressed by the engagement of the students during the workshop. 

"Despite being an intense two days you are still coming out with very interesting and insightful questions. So we really hope that you have learnt about the art and poetry of the human body about the anatomy and physiology," she added. 

Asst Prof Reddy and Dr Preman also felt that students have gained from the short but fruitful two-day workshop.

Asst Prof Reddy said, "This two-day workshop is a very rich experience for the students. We gave access to our school resources, our teaching tools and showed them how we teach at LKCMedicine. They went through the hands-on practical sessions and they solved problems through group discussions during the TBL session."

Similarly Dr Preman said, "The students got a sense of how packed and how much there is in a medical curriculum. Hopefully they also met some new friends and learn something new about the heart of medicine and the guts of medicine".