Weird, witty and worthwhile: Exploring the benefits of mnemonic- based medical education

Introduction: Mnemonics, both self- created and well- established, are commonly used by medical students to boost their recall of knowledge in exams. Previous studies have evaluated mnemonics’ utility in medical education, but few have demonstrated positive effects on students’ knowledge and confidence. Mnemonics are also more commonly shared directly between peers, as opposed to being formally taught in medical schools. However, previous studies have not specifically evaluated mnemonics in near- peer based teaching. This study explores the impact of mnemonic-based, near- peer-led teaching on medical students' knowledge and confidence. It aims to determine whether mnemonics enhance students' ability to answer exam-style questions and boost self-perceived confidence and future mnemonic use. Methods: Over eight months, 23 peer-led teaching sessions on commonly- tested clinical medical topics were held for third-year medical students, with at least two mnemonics incorporated into all sessions. Pre- and post- session SBA questions and five- point Likert scales were used to assess change in students’ knowledge and confidence, respectively. Post- session, Likert scales were also used to assess students’ self- rated utility of the mnemonics taught and their likely future use of each mnemonic. Statistical analyses were performed using Python and SciPy packages. Results: Students demonstrated a significant improvement in SBA scores, particularly for mnemonic-linked questions (p < 0.05). Confidence levels also significantly increased post-teaching (p < 0.01). Students reported a higher likelihood of future mnemonic use, and a strong correlation was found between improved confidence and increased mnemonic use (p < 0.001). Out of five mnemonic types used, rhymes were the most useful mnemonics across all sessions, though absolute numbers of each mnemonic used were too small to draw any statistically significant conclusions. Discussion: Peer-led teaching with mnemonic integration significantly improved both knowledge and student confidence. Mnemonics proved to be a valuable tool in aiding recall, and students expressed a higher likelihood of using them in the future. This study highlights the potential of both mnemonic-based and peer-led learning strategies in medical education. Future work could assess the utility of different types of mnemonics and follow up learners to assess knowledge retention over time.