Why Make an Electronic Case-based Teaching File?
A digital teaching file has both advantages and disadvantages relative to a film-based teaching file. The primary advantage is the potential for widespread network access, both from multiple clinical sites within a medical center and by residents and staff at different institutions. Multi-institutional efforts allow the most valuable teaching cases to be viewed by many individuals, while spreading out the effort of creating the teaching cases among a larger number of faculty. Such use requires ready network access using commonly available programs, as well as a method of ensuring the quality of the “digitally published” cases. Other advantages of an electronic teaching file include the capability for cine display, the ability to search based upon diagnosis or type of study, the ability to rapidly incorporate new information based upon user feedback and new publications, and the ease with which slides can be made using a film recorder. Use of a digital teaching file has several disadvan
