2019
Medical school was founded
107
Students in the first cohort
110
Students in the second cohort
2021
Institutional partnership with Osmosis began
Programs with Osmosis
BMBS
Kent and Medway Medical School
The Solution
Adding Osmosis to the library of resources available to all students.
Upon student recommendation, Mr. Gschwandtner brought Osmosis to members of the school’s Senior Leadership Team. They welcomed Osmosis’s variety of tools - videos, flashcards, and questions. The pedagogy behind the video production at Osmosis was also evident. Content chunked into short videos and illustrations enhance students’ learning experience on the platform.
KMMS faculty appreciate having a resource where they can easily direct students to the most appropriate content through playlists. Faculty can suggest videos for students to watch before they come to class as preparatory material and or as extra reading after teaching. Students are also given freedom to explore the full content library.
After the first trial, “the feedback we had from students was really enthusiastic.” Student feedback was shown to faculty who were interested in using resources “that would help and support our students' learning.” This solidified the commitment to providing Osmosis access to all students.
How the Kent and Medway Medical School’s library has expanded student access to engaging digital resources with Osmosis
The Program
Kent and Medway Medical School (KMMS) welcomed its founding students in 2020, with a mission to educate aspiring doctors to deliver 21st century medicine in the local community and beyond. Their inspiring program focuses on person-centered care. Their innovative approach to admissions has led to high proportions of students from backgrounds traditionally less well represented in medicine. Across the school, faculty and staff are motivated to help students excel as future clinicians able to transform the future of healthcare. KMMS librarian, Mr. Manfred Gschwandtner, plays a key role in providing students with the resources they need to succeed.
The Challenge
Textbooks have been the primary resource in medical education for decades. However, current medical students are often looking for new ways to learn information, particularly when they desire more clarity or details after the initial lecture. Students often search for other resources, like videos online. Mr. Gschwandtner explains, “YouTube is great, and it has so many interesting resources, but still it takes [students] a lot of time to find and they aren’t always sure about the reliability and trustworthiness of the resources.”
To help ensure these alternative resources were credible and consistent, KMMS searched for reliable content. “We had this interest in looking at what else is there that our students might need and love and that might be helpful for their studies.”
KMMS also wanted to supply students with everything needed to succeed in medical school without adding the additional monetary burden of individually purchasing external resources. “Students with a widening participation background might not have the financial means to buy individual subscriptions for learning resources. Therefore, we decided we would subscribe as an institution to make sure that all of our students have equal access to good digital resources.”
There are so many different types of learning resources now, and I think as a librarian we should explore them and try to see how they benefit our students…Osmosis really showed me how important this is, as it is one of our most used resources for students.”
Manfred Gschwandtner
KMMS Librarian
The Result
Osmosis and other digital products together are advantageous for student learning.
Students enjoy using a resource that includes engaging videos paired with the practice questions for examination preparation. Meanwhile, faculty are excited to have an easy-to-use resource to support student success.
More than half of all KMMS medical students have utilized Osmosis since September 2021. Students are watching more than just an occasional video. They are actively engaged users who tend to frequently use their favorite mix of features including videos, questions, and flashcards. As Mr. Gschwandtner explained, “a lot of students look at a lot of videos.”
Student engagement with Osmosis ranks near the levels of the library’s most popular textbook resources. “As part of our digital first strategy, we have a range of e-book collections providing access to core medical textbooks. In the weeks before exams Osmosis was more used than the core textbooks.”
The use of Osmosis has inspired Mr. Gschwandtner to continually look for innovations to support medical students. "There is another world out there beyond books and journal articles and the databases that we usually offer in the library, particularly with regards to medical education resources. There are so many different types of learning resources now, including apps. And I think, as a librarian, we should explore them and try to see how they benefit our students.”
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