Role of early clinical exposure for clinical training among medical undergraduate students

Abstract

Early clinical exposure (ECE) is a teaching-learning method which leads to the clinical exposure of first year medical students and also aids them to interact with patients as early as the first year of medical curriculum. ECE sessions help the students to improve their academic strength, clinical, and communication skills thus making them more confident. ECE makes an overall impact on student's performance and enhances their confidence in the first phase of medical curriculum. Planning of ECE can be done in different settings with the use of resource materials such as logbook, textbooks, instruments, case sheets, and computers. The Medical Council of India in new educational reforms made ECE sessions compulsory from 2019 in undergraduate medical curriculum. This review highlights the different roles of student in ECE sessions, different ECE settings during its implementation in regular teaching.