Presented By: Amber Heard-Booth, Michigan State University
Co-Authors: Rylee Ellen Lane, Michigan State University
Ryan Tubbs, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine

Purpose 
Medical illustrators have a unique skill set that positively impacts their potential to become valuable members of an anatomy laboratory's operational and/or teaching staff. Since 2013, anatomy faculty at Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine (MSU-CHM) have regularly taught and mentored medical illustration students from Kendall College of Art & Design (KCAD). As part of the program, KCAD students enroll in four anatomy courses at MSU-CHM, culminating in a human prosection course. After this course series, students have a strong foundation of anatomical knowledge and a semester of prosection experience. High-performing students are encouraged to apply for prosector positions after graduation. Here, we discuss the benefits of having medical illustrators in the anatomy lab.

Methods 
Retrospective surveys were used to gather multiple perspectives on the value of having medical illustrators present in the anatomy lab. Populations surveyed include current and former prosection students, undergraduate students from courses where a medical illustrator served as a teaching assistant, and KCAD graduates who worked as prosectors in the lab.

Results 
Survey results highlight several benefits of having medical illustrators present in the anatomy lab. For example, students favorably highlight their use of illustrations to convey anatomical concepts and their attention to detail when offering prosection guidance; KCAD graduates who worked as prosectors added depth to portfolio projects and developed professional skills; and faculty anecdotally appreciate the high-quality prosections produced by medical illustrators, as well as their ability to produce original illustrations for teaching resources.

Conclusions 
Medical illustrators bring a unique perspective and skill set to the anatomy lab that is mutually beneficial for themselves, students, and faculty. We suggest anatomy departments consider developing relationships with medical or scientific illustration programs in their area as a potential pipeline for training skilled prosectors and/or teaching assistants.