Recruiting future physicians in the clinical neurosciences requires collaboration beginning early in undergraduate medical education. A particular challenge is that many students suffer from neurophobia, viewing neurosciences content as difficult. Thus, innovative and interactive teaching methods are being introduced to enhance student learning.^1,2,4 While student experiences with these methods have been explored, less is known regarding the impact of these initiatives on participating faculty. We set out to understand faculty perceptions and experiences with an interactive, hands-on preclinical neurosciences workshop.

All first-year medical students at one institution attended a four-hour clinical neurosciences workshop in 2023 and 2024 (200 students annually). Each workshop featured various interactive stations (12 in 2023; 16 in 2024), including lumbar puncture, thrombectomy, and EMG. Faculty, residents, and other clinical staff were recruited to lead the stations. Station leaders were invited to complete a voluntary post-workshop survey with open-ended responses. Thematic analysis was performed.

Over two years, 35 post-survey responses were collected (66% response rate). Respondents included attending physicians (60.0%), fellows (2.9%), residents (8.6%), therapists (5.7%), senior medical students (11.4%), and industry representatives (11.4%) across neurology, neurosurgery, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and psychiatry disciplines. Station leaders spent an average of 2.65 hours at the workshop. More than 80% agreed students gained a better understanding of preclinical lecture topics and clinical procedures through the workshop. Faculty appreciated increased interactions with other faculty, learning from peers, new teaching opportunities, and experiencing enhanced student engagement.