{
  "abstract": "Introduction\n\nStandardized patient encounters (SPEs) are a foundational tool in medical education, yet their pre-clerkship role in undergraduate medical education, particularly in neuroscience, remains less clearly defined. This study evaluates the impact of integrating SPEs into a pre-clerkship Nervous System course on student knowledge, diagnostic confidence, and performance. Our objective was to design reproducible neurology-focused SPEs for pre-clerkship learners and assess its effectiveness in improving knowledge acquisition and diagnostic confidence with common neurological conditions.Methods\n\nSecond-year medical students at our institution who were enrolled in a 6-week Nervous System course participated in four structured SPEs addressing common neurologic presentations. Students conducted focused neurologic histories, examinations, and diagnostic reasoning. Knowledge was assessed using a 10-item quiz administered before and after the SPEs. Performance on 12 SPE-related NBME final exam questions was compared with national averages. Diagnostic confidence was evaluated using pre- and post-SPE self-assessment surveys.Results\n\nStudents demonstrated significant improvement in knowledge, with a median quiz score increase of 1.0 point (Hodges-Lehmann estimate, 95% CI: 0.0-3.5; p < 0.0001). On the NBME exam, our students outperformed national averages across nearly all SPE-related items (FIU mean = 0.87 vs. 0.71; p < 0.05). Students also reported significant increases in diagnostic confidence across all neurologic conditions assessed (all p < 0.001).Discussion\n\nIntegration of SPEs into a pre-clerkship neurology course resulted in immediate gains in knowledge and confidence, and higher standardized exam performance, underscoring SPEs as a valuable early experiential learning modality in clinical neuroscience education.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University Herbert, 11200 SW 8th St AHC2, Miami, FL 33199 USA."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Hope Cherian"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Rachel Dockter"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Emiri Uchiyama"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jenny Fortun",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7343-9434"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c7p8nay380kmd.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1007/s40670-026-02801-9",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13723580",
  "id": "c7p8nay380kmd",
  "issns": [
    "2156-8650"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42968829",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2737|Simulation-Based Education in Healthcare"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7166477005",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13723580?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13723580",
  "pmid": "42968829",
  "published": "2026-06-29",
  "publisher": "Springer",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c7p8nay380kmd.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-03T15:20:54Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42968829",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42968829"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T12:22:11Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13723580",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-026-02801-9"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2737|Simulation-Based Education in Healthcare",
      "subfield": "physiology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Benefits of Integrating Standardized Patient Encounters into Pre-clerkship Neurology Curriculum.",
  "title_text": "Benefits of Integrating Standardized Patient Encounters into Pre-clerkship Neurology Curriculum.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-05T12:20:23Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c7p8nay380kmd",
  "venue": "Medical science educator",
  "versions": []
}