The efficient use of movies in a crowded curriculum.

BACKGROUND: The undergraduate medical curriculum has earned a reputation for being overcrowded. The dilemma for educationalists is to determine what, if anything, can be jettisoned from a congested curriculum to accommodate new ideas or material. CONTEXT: We report on a small study that demonstrated that when movies are used innovatively, they enhance students' understanding of medicine and also have a minimal impact on the 'crowded' curriculum. INNOVATION: During a 5-week-long Public Health module students could borrow from the medical school library, free of charge, one or more movies, each with a public health message. In the final week of the module a 1.5-hour-long class was allocated when each student offered a brief synopsis of a movie that they had watched, and then identified key public health issues discussed in the movie. IMPLICATIONS: Our study supports the view that the creative use of classroom time not only allows for better use of the timetable, but also proves to be an integrative, stimulating, and fun way for medical students to learn.