Anatomy education in transition: examining medical student experiences during the distance education

Abstract

Background: Distance education emerged as a potential solution to enhance access, standardize content, and facilitate updates. However, student perceptions varied widely. The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a rapid shift towards distance education in anatomy, presenting challenges and opportunities for medical students globally. A crucial area of study is how distant learning, utilized once more during the 2023 earthquakes, affects medical education and students. This study investigates medical students’ perspectives on anatomy education in remote and in-person settings. Materials and methods: This study involved surveying first and second-year medical students to gather their opinions and experiences regarding distance and face-to-face education. The advantages and disadvantages of anatomy distance education were then analyzed based on the students’ responses. Results: Individuals who preferred traditional in-person education were less inclined to utilize digital resources, whereas those who selected remote education shown a greater preference for the usage of digital resources (p < 0.001). Similarly, individuals who favored traditional in-person education exhibited low levels of confidence in online exams, whereas those who preferred remote education shown high levels of confidence (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Considering the results of our study and our location in a potentially hazardous area affected by the North Anatolian Fault line in the Marmara Region of Türkiye, we believe that our experiences with distance education will help in effectively maintaining the anatomy in medical education process. (Folia Morphol 2025; 84, 3: 702–710).