Case based teaching at the bed side versus in classroom for undergraduates and residents of pediatrics

Introduction: Bedside teaching is defined as teaching in the presence of a patient, it is a vital component of medical education. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two methods of case based teaching (at the bedside and in the classroom) in the teaching hospitals (for both undergraduates and residents of Pediatrics). Methods: Thirty undergraduates and twenty pediatric residents were asked to study a topic of their curriculum from their text then pretest was taken from learners in the two levels; then either lecture with power point or case presentation or bed side discussion were conducted. One week later posttest was taken, and then evaluation of these three methods was done by a questionnaire from learners. Results: The majority of under-graduates and all of pediatric residents had evaluated case based teaching superior to bedside teaching and these two methods superior to lecture method. Conclusion: They believed that in the case based teaching they are more relaxed and have more self-esteem than at the bedside of the patients. Clinician teacher must involve patients and learners in the process of bedside teaching, by preparing a comfortable situation and by using available technolgy.