The Effectiveness of an Elective About Fertility Awareness-Based Methods on Students’ Knowledge: A Quasi-Experimental Study of Nursing and Medical Students

To assess the effectiveness of an elective to improve students’ knowledge of fertility awareness-based methods for family planning and to determine whether there was a difference in knowledge gained by student type and/or course structure.

A quasi-experimental study of pre- and post- assessment scores among three different groups of healthcare students.

In one group, 24 undergraduate nursing students in a semester-long hybrid course. In a second group, 16 second year medical students in a six-week hybrid selective course. In the third group, 80 fourth year medical students in a two-week online elective for a total of 120 students completing the elective from January 2018 to June 2020.

All students completed a knowledge assessment before the course, and the identical assessment after the course, with a maximum possible score of 20. ANOVA and non-parametric tests were used for data analysis.

The main outcome measure was comparison of post-course scores to pre-course scores.

The mean pre-course score of about 50% in the undergraduate nursing group (x) was lower than the medical students in the six-week course (y) and two-week course (z) both about 70%. However, there was no difference in the mean post-course scores between the groups, which was about 90%.

Assessments were mandated, but lectures were not, which could skew assessment scores. Additionally, the study focused on students signing up for the elective so it may not be generalizable to all medical and nursing student populations. Finally, educational interests and demographics impacting a student’s ability to learn and retain FABM knowledge is beyond the scope of this study.

This elective was effective in improving fertility awareness-based method knowledge of medical and nursing students. All student groups had strong post-course knowledge scores – 90% accuracy, regardless of course structure. A fully online elective has the potential to make this knowledge easily available worldwide.