Presented By: Mallikarjuna Barremkala, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Co-Authors: David Howell, Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine

Purpose 
The progressive reduction of anatomical contact hours combined with nonexistent Greek and Latin education in America has substantially stunted medical students' understanding of anatomical terminology. For this reason, many medical students report rote memorization as their main learning approach for anatomical terminology which results in poor retention and incomplete comprehension. As a result, physicians, residents, and medical students have made critical mistakes during patient care. Etymology, or the study of word origins, demonstrates improved comprehension, retention, and recall. This study seeks to determine the efficacy of supplemental etymology modules for anatomical terminology with anticipation of future implementation in the medical school curriculum. 

Methods 
All first-year medical students were provided five optional interactive modules with built-in quizzes and practice questions that integrate etymology with anatomical terminology. These modules vary from previous studies since they provide content concurrent with the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine (OUWB) anatomy curriculum and test individual comprehension. Focus groups of 5-8 students will be conducted to identify the effect of the modules and further areas of improvement for supplemental curriculum.  

Results 
All data from modules and quizzes have been collected and correlated with engagement throughout modules. 100 of 125 (80%) of students utilized these modules in the first year.  

Conclusion 
Initial data suggests engagement with this resource improves anatomical education. We hypothesize that these modules will continue to increase comprehension, retention, and recall of anatomical terminology, and provide a solid foundation for application throughout the curriculum. In addition, we hypothesize that students will report engagement with the material and identify the efficacy of the modules in the focus group setting. We anticipate that this research will provide key input into integrated Anatomy curricula nationwide to combat linguistic comprehension disparities in the medical field.