Enhancing Orthopedic Diagnostic Skills for Primary Care NP Students with a Interdisciplinary Cadaver Lab Experience

Most undergraduate nursing programs do not provide an opportunity for students to practice anatomy skills on cadavers and frequently use feline specimens for dissection.  Assessment and diagnosis of joint conditions and injuries of complicated joints such as the shoulder and knee can be challenging for nurse practitioners who have not visualized these joints though cadaver dissection. 

Adult-gerontology primary care nursing students joined pre-med students for the musculoskeletal portion of the anatomy lectures and attended separate cadaver labs taught by orthopedic surgical residents. Students were given an anatomy pre-test to determine baseline knowledge of musculoskeletal structures.  Faculty provided the residents with objectives for each lab, which included a list of orthopedic conditions and injuries that commonly present in the primary care setting.  Four lab sessions were divided into upper limb, lower limb, neck, and back anatomy.  Conditions involving both soft tissue and bony structures were discussed during dissections.  Techniques of exam were demonstrated and practiced, following the cadaver lab experience.  Students were given a post-test and a practical exam at the end of the course.