Lights, Camera, Education: From Reel to Reality - Cinemeducation in Action, Shattering HIV Myths & Shaping Medical Minds!
S Soumya, Mohammed S Farhan, Praful MasteObjectives
HIV/AIDS education is one of the most important topics taught during medical training; conventional lecture-based methods often lack in helping students understand its emotional, ethical, and social complexities. To handle these aspects, alternative/additional methods like cinemeducation could help as an innovative approach where movies, along with narrative media, would help the students to better engage and understand the topic through an empathetic learning experience, thus helping to improve both knowledge retention and bring about attitudinal change. Thus, this study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of cinemeducation versus traditional didactic lectures in improving HIV/AIDS-related knowledge, reducing stigma and enhancing clinical confidence among undergraduate medical students.
Material and Methods
A quasi-experimental study was conducted among 180 second-phase MBBS students. Participants were divided into two groups (n = 90 each). Group A received a film-based cinemeducation intervention, and Group B underwent a traditional lecture on HIV/AIDS. Pre- and post-test questionnaires were used to assess knowledge, attitudes, and clinical confidence. Statistical analyses: paired and independent t-tests were performed using SPSS version 20.
Results
Both groups showed statistically significant improvements in knowledge and attitudes with p <0.001. However, the cinemeducation group demonstrated greater mean score improvement (pre: 10.1 ± 2.4; post: 14.6 ± 1.6; Δ = +4.5) compared to the lecture group (pre: 10.2 ± 2.3; post: 13.8 ± 1.9; Δ = +3.6). Cinemeducation was more effective in enhancing understanding of complex concepts such as U=U and confidentiality responsibilities, and also helped in reducing discomfort in treating PLHIV. Following this session, attitudinal gains were also seen among the participants, which were reflected in increased empathy, reduced stigma, and improved ethical awareness.
Conclusion
Cinemeducation significantly enhances cognitive and affective learning outcomes in comparison to traditional lectures. Being a story-based approach, it helps in emotionally engagement of the students, thus helping to clear misconceptions, reduce stigma, and build a more professional attitude toward HIV/AIDS care. Integrating cinemeducation into medical curricula may help bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and humane clinical practice.