Calculating the Notional Learning Hours (NLH) for Final-year Medical Students in a Clinical Surgery Clerkship Course

Abstract

Background: The main objective of this study is to design a method to calculate the notional learning hours (NLH) of final year medical students doing a surgical clerkship course.  Secondary objectives include derivation of the Oman Qualification Framework (OQF) credits and setting a benchmark of NLH in clinical courses.
Methods: This is an observational cross-sectional study which uses a quantitative way to estimate students’ NLH. A questionnaire was designed and filled by final year medical students at the end of their surgical rotation. Ethical clearance was obtained. The data were uploaded and analyzed using SPSS 25. The NLH was then calculated and mapped on the OQF template.
Results:Ninety-seven students participated in the study. Students spent an average of 1.20 (0.99) hours/day to study their clinical sessions and 2.86 (1.4)/day to study for their theory sessions. The mean weekend hours of study on Friday and Saturday were 3.1 hours (2.6), and 3.2 hours (2.5), respectively. The average preparation for the end rotation and the final MD exams were 9.7 (3.3) and 10.4 (3.6) hours, respectively. We calculated the NLH of our students by adding the above data to the contact teaching hours from our course timetable. We compared our results with worldwide medical schools.
Conclusion: The NLH of our surgical clerkship students was calculated and subsequently the OQF credits were derived. This suggested method is evidence-based and could be used as a guide by other clinical clerkship courses.