College launches National Anatomy Project

The detailed study of topographical human anatomy based on cadaver dissections has for centuries been an essential, integral and traditional part of the undergraduate medical curriculum in the UK. However, in 1993, following a comprehensive review of the existing curriculum, increased emphasis was placed on issues such as communication skills, self-directed learning, etc. This has unfortunately resulted in a corresponding reduction in the amount of time allocated to the study of basic medical sciences, including human anatomy. Several medical schools have since abandoned dissection-based anatomy teaching altogether. As a consequence, there has been a noticeable and serious decline in the general level of applied anatomical knowledge displayed by senior medical students and surgical trainees.