Cristina Crespo-Andrade

We aimed to describe the impact of a structured interventional program to improve learning and study skills in undergraduate medical students from a Latin American medical school. The interventional program’s design was based on diagnostic/prescriptive assessment test scores measuring ten scales. The program consisted of five tailored workshops. The cohort studied consisted of 81 third-year medical students. The outcome variable was the difference between “pre” and “post” test scores. The unadjusted score percentiles were used to compare improvement in learning and study skills. In addition, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess variation in the mean difference of the test scores by the number of workshops attended. The response rate was 100% (81/81) for the pre test and ~77% (62/81) for the post test. After the interventional program, nine out of ten scales showed statistical improvement, except for the scale of motivation. The scales with the highest and lowest percent change improvement were time management (66%, p-value: p-value: 0.06). The students who attended more workshops obtained a higher percent change improvement in the post test. These findings suggest that through a well-designed interventional program, it is possible to improve learning and study skills among medical students.

Mass migration and people seeking political refuge are critical social issues facing Latin America. Ecuador has the largest population of recognized refugees in the region. Youths from a migration background have an increased risk of becoming NEET (Young people not in employment, education, or training). Such youths struggle more with mental health problems than non-NEET peers. Being a refugee, NEET further increases the risk of having mental health problems and may be linked to lower cognitive functioning, which could maintain exclusion and unemployment. This intervention study was performed with a group of young people of different nationalities who were refugees or belonged to other vulnerable groups attending a six-week employability-support intervention in Ecuador. In order to assess the impact of the intervention, a range of measures of executive cognitive function, mental health, and the potential for positive change were used. We found that post-intervention, the group reported significantly less psychological distress and better self-esteem, self-efficacy, and cognitive response inhibition than before the intervention. We conclude that multicomponent interventions may effectively improve the psychological functioning of vulnerable NEET groups in the Latin American context.