Students perceive that early clinical exposure improves problem-solving and confidence, and many redefine their understanding of professionalism¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2025 · checked against its sources 2026-10-31 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? In single included studies, most students perceived that ECE improved their problem-solving skills (one cross-sectional study) and their confidence to deal with patients (one cross-sectional study), and 59% redefined their understanding of medical professionalism (one qualitative study). → Shaban Eman E. 2025

Evidence¶

Shaban Eman E. 2025¶

Shaban Eman E., Elmelliti Hussam, Shaban Amira, Shaban Ahmed, Zaki Hany A. (2025). Impact of early clinical exposure on medical students’ competency development: a systematic review of evidence from Asian and African countries. BMC Medical Education. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-025-08103-9

q2 · i? · review · r2

Systematic review with narrative synthesis of 15 studies of early clinical exposure (ECE) in Asian and African medical schools. Each perception finding here comes from one included study: in one cross-sectional study most students perceived that ECE improved their problem-solving skills; in another, "12.1% strongly agreed and 50.5% agreed" that ECE increased their confidence to deal with patients; and a qualitative study reported that 59% of students redefined their understanding of medical professionalism after ECE, which is a change in understanding rather than a perceived improvement in professionalism. All are self-reports, and no effect size is printed.

"the majority of medical students receiving the ECE intervention reported that this method increased their confidence to deal with patients (12.1% strongly agreed and 50.5% agreed)"

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Problem Solving — outcome: instruction changes it
• Self-Efficacy — outcome: instruction changes it

Related Claims¶

• Early clinical exposure is associated with higher empathy scores regardless of gender and academic year — related
• Early clinical exposure improves the clinical skills of medical students compared with traditional teaching — related
• Most medical students report that early clinical exposure improves their communication skills — related
• Early clinical exposure increases medical knowledge test scores and motivates learning — related
• All three ECE modalities show significant positive effects, with real clinical interactions showing the largest pooled effect — related