Overcoming the neurophobia of tracts: travelling the path is as important as the destination reached

The study of ascending and descending neural tracts are essential for health-care students to properly assess, diagnose and manage sensorimotor disorders. Unlike other anatomical structures neural tracts are not visible in gross or histological specimens making it harder for students to comprehend and make clinical correlations. This further perpetuates ‘neurophobia’, a term that describes the fear of the study of neurological sciences amongst medical students. Literature demonstrating good practice on how to effectively teach this topic is sparse and while 2D resources are abundant physical 3D models that can aid learning for students who prefer a more haptic approach are limited. We developed a model-based generative approach to foster student comprehension and long-term retention. Using Perspex acrylic, slices of different regions of the brain (the cerebrum, brainstem and the spinal cord) were fashioned in-house and assembled to create table-top models. Holes were drilled into them at specific locations to enable students to pass wires depicting the path taken by the fibres of three tracts – lateral corticospinal, dorsal column-medial lemniscus and lateral spinothalamic tracts. One week after the didactic lectures, a small group learning activity was presented to second year MBChB students, who worked in groups of 4–5 to build the three pathways on their model using coloured wires. Students then used the model to understand clinical presentations of lesions at different locations along the pathway. Self-reported confidence and understanding of this topic was surveyed pre- and post-session using audience polling software. Nearly 66% of students (126 out of 191) responded. Confidence levels rose from 10% pre-session to 98.5% post-session, indicating the effectiveness of the session. Almost 82% agreed or strongly agreed that the activity complimented traditional lectures. Words used to describe the session included Useful, Good, Interactive, Great success, Excellent, Alright, Consolidating, Clarifying and Visual. Using simple, self-constructed models, we have shown that the stepwise study of the anatomy of tracts coupled with introduction to clinical scenarios is helpful in clarifying and consolidating concepts especially in hard-to-visualise areas of neuroanatomy. Ethics Statement: This is a service evaluation of the existing teaching sessions, and no ethical permission was required. Survey participation was optional and consent implied.