Purpose
Comics, a medium used to express ideas with images often combined with text or other visual information, can tell stories and provide opportunities for deeper exploration of themes. As an educational tool, they can provide an innovative approach to delivering medical education. By leveraging the effects of visual storytelling, comics can enhance engagement with and comprehension of complex concepts, providing an opportunity to portray scenarios that may be challenging to replicate in traditional educational settings. Furthermore, comics create a safe, low-risk environment for exploring difficult topics, fostering emotional intelligence, and facilitating empathy.

Methods
Comics will be integrated into the basic sciences curriculum to evaluate their impact on medical student engagement and learning outcomes in 3 phases. Phase 1 will involve identifying and selecting challenging patient-oriented topics in the basic sciences and existing learning resources to convert into a comic format, emphasizing clarity and alignment with learning objectives. Phase 2 will involve introducing the comic as a supplemental learning resource in digital format. Phase 3 will involve collecting data through surveys, focus groups, and assessment of academic performance to 1) determine the efficacy of comic use for improving understanding and retention of complex concepts, 2) gather insights on how it influenced students’ ability to engage with challenging material and connect with patient perspectives, and 3) assess the impact on exam performance.

Results
We anticipate that by catering to diverse learning preferences and making learning more accessible, comics will engage students and facilitate content mastery, demonstrated through improved test scores. Additionally, the narrative elements embedded within the comics can promote a deeper understanding of patient perspectives and compassionate decision-making, enhancing professional competency.

Conclusion
Comics are an engaging learning tool. By simplifying topics into digestible formats, comics can enhance medical students’ learning experiences, transforming how core competencies are taught in medical education.