Writing Cases for

Slide 1:Writing Cases for Learning Activities

Melissa Medina, Ed.M., ABD College of Pharmacy Sheila Crow, MA College of Medicine

Slide 2:Objectives

Reflect on personal experiences teaching with cases List specific concepts to consider prior to writing cases Identify elements of effective cases Create a case using criteria for writing effective cases Evaluate case examples

Slide 3:What is a case?

Promote decision making Should match the objectives of the course Provide a framework for a discussion Should function as a “surrogate teacher”

Slide 4:Case Example

CC MM, a 40 yo, male presents to the emergency room with a 2 day history of worsening shortness of breath and chest discomfort. PMH decreased left ventricular function (EF 15%) new-onset diabetes mellitus valvular heart disease cardiomegaly

Slide 5:What is not a case?

A textbook or a syllabus Easily solvable An unrealistic example A list of yes-no questions

Slide 6:Not a Case Example

CC PM, a 20 yo male presents to his PCP for an annual physical. His vitals are all WNL. He is in excellent health and presents with no complaints. Vital signs BP: 120/80 HR: 70 What is the range of normal for BP?

Slide 7:How to get started?

Case writing involves making a large number of decision Logistics, objectives, and expectations Attention needed PRIOR to writing the case Students, faculty, and course

Slide 8:Students # of students in course / class # of students / group # of groups Faculty # of facilitators per group # of faculty required Expert or non-expert

What should you consider? Waterman, R.E., & Mennin, S.P., 1997

Slide 9:Course Logistics How long will each session last? How often will groups meet? How many sessions during course? Will cases be used in a single or multiple sessions? Amount of study time between sessions? What else is happening during the week / semester? Will there be feedback during the session?

Course Considerations Waterman, R.E., & Mennin, S.P., 1997

Slide 10:Who is Your Audience? What level of learners will use the case? What is the expertise or experience of individuals using the case?

Learner Considerations

Slide 11:Decide what the goals of your case Introduce new material to students Integrate and connect information Stimulate generation of questions/hypotheses Demonstrate a problem solving exercise Model a particular approach to the patient

What should a case accomplish?

Slide 12:Write an explicit list of objectives Specify content, skills, thought processes Limit to a manageable breadth and depth Objectives should be measurable Prioritize the goals and objectives in each area

Are case objectives important?

Slide 13:Guidelines for Writing A Case

Include an authentic and realistic context Identify the goals and measurable objectives Define the case format (i.e., length, questions) Avoid propounding theories, instead, pose complex, controversial issues Include sufficient background information to allow learners to tackle the issues Write the case in a well-organized structure and in clear language

Slide 14:Case Writing Exercise

Case Goals Understand risk factors associated with coronary artery disease that may lead to a heart attack Differentiate between normal coronary artery disease and heart attacks

Slide 15:Case Writing Exercise Objectives

Interpret basic medical test results, e.g., blood pressure, blood glucose, and lipid levels. Identify healthy and not-so-healthy lifestyle choices. Identify the medical consequences of these lifestyle choices. Describe some of the mechanisms that lead to these medical consequences. Compare and contrast symptoms of coronary artery disease and heart attack in men and women.

Slide 16:Case Evaluation

Does the case achieve the learning objectives? Are the problem issues presented in the case related to the learning objectives? Is the case sufficiently complete, complex and focused? Does the case appear to be realistic? Are all the constituents of a narrative included in the case?

Slide 17:Are the events and actions in the case sequenced in a logical order? Are the events connected with appropriate transitional signals? Is the content in the case accurate, relevant, and appropriate in terms of subject matter? If there are external resources, are they appropriate?

Case Evaluation Continued

Slide 18:Evaluating Success of a Case

Are there omissions or errors in the case? Did it achieve what you hoped it would? What did students do that was not predicted? How will you measure student learning? Will you need to construct a “case evaluation” form Waterman, R.E., & Mennin, S.P., 1997

Slide 19:Questions?

Slide 20:Contact Information

Sheila Crow, M.A. Program Director for Curriculum Development University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Shelia-crow@ouhsc.edu Melissa S. Medina, Ed.M., ABD Clinical Assistant Professor & Director of Office of Instructional Sciences and Assessment University of Oklahoma College of Pharmacy Melissa-medina@ouhsc.edu

Slide 21:Additional Case Writing Resources

National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/case.html University of Delaware, Problem Based Learning, http://www.udel.edu/pbl/ Searle Center for Teaching Excellence, http://teach.northwestern.edu/links.html Waterman, R.E. & Mennin, S.P. (1997). Things to think about when writing cases to be used in student-centered teaching/learning. University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, Division of Educational Development and Research.