Abstract: Abstract Medical educators are tasked with decisions on trainee progression and credentialing for independent clinical practice, which requires robust evidence from workplace-based assessment. It is unclear how the current promotion of workplace-based assessment as a pedagogical approach to promote learning has impacted this use of assessments for decision-making; meeting both these purposes may present unforeseen challenges. In this study we explored how supervisors make decisions on trainee progress in practice. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 19 supervisors of postgraduate anesthesia training across Australia and New Zealand and undertook thematic analysis of the transcripts. Supervisors looked beyond the formal assessment portfolio when making performance decisions. They instead used assessment ‘shadow systems’ based on their own observation and confidential judgements from trusted colleagues. Supervisors’ decision making involved expert judgement of the perceived salient aspects of performance and the standard to be attained while making allowances for the opportunities and constraints of the local learning environment. Supervisors found making progress decisions an emotional burden. When faced with difficult decisions, they found ways to share the responsibility and balance the potential consequences for the trainee with the need to protect their patients. Viewed through the lens of community of practice theory, the development of assessment ‘shadow systems’ indicates a lack of alignment between local workplace assessment practices and the prescribed programmatic assessment approach to high-stakes progress decisions. Avenues for improvement include cooperative development of formal assessment processes to better meet local needs or incorporating the information in ‘shadow systems’ into formal assessment processes. PubDate: 2019-09-03
Abstract: Abstract While University students increasingly participate in work-integrated learning (WIL), their dignity is often violated during WIL. The current literature is limited in so far as it typically focuses on student perspectives within healthcare contexts and does not use the concept of ‘dignity’. Instead, this study explored student and supervisor perspectives on student dignity during WIL across healthcare and non-healthcare disciplines. Research questions included: What are: (1) types of student dignity experiences and patterns by groups; (2) factors contributing to experiences; (3) consequences of experiences' Sixty-five semi-structured interviews were conducted using narrative interviewing techniques with 30 supervisors and 46 students from healthcare (medicine, nursing and counselling) and non-healthcare (business, law and education) disciplines. Data were analyzed using framework analysis. Nine common narrative types were identified within 344 stories: verbal abuse, right for learning opportunities, care, inclusion, reasonable expectations, right for appropriate feedback, equality, trust, and right to be informed. Factors contributing to dignity experiences and consequences were often at the individual level (e.g. student/supervisor characteristics). We found some salient differences in perceptions of experiences between students and supervisors, but few differences between healthcare and non-healthcare disciplines. This study extends WIL research based on student perspectives in healthcare, and provides practice and further research guidance to enhance student dignity during WIL. PubDate: 2019-09-03
Abstract: Abstract Although educators frequently act as if curricula are as standardized as drug doses (300 mg of PBL t.i.d.), such is not the case. As a case in point, at its inception, Problem Based Learning was hailed as a major curriculum innovation, with the promise of enormous gains in learning outcomes. Very quickly, ecclesiastical debates arose as what was true PBL and what was “modified PBL”. Ironically, systematic reviews conducted fairly early in its evolution showed that the gains in learning outcome from PBL were neither large nor uniform (Vernon and Blake in Acad Med 68:550–563, 1993), and the most consistent finding was greater student satisfaction. In this paper, we review five decades of experience with the first PBL curriculum at McMaster. We point out how the curriculum has evolved, both theoretically and practically, in response to external influences, based both on empirical evidence and practical demands. We describe these changes in four broad domains—theoretical rationale, the curriculum, assessment and admissions. PubDate: 2019-08-27
Abstract: Abstract In postgraduate medical education, required competencies are described in detail in existing competency frameworks. This study proposes an alternative strategy for competency-based medical education design, which is supported by change management theories. We demonstrate the value of allowing room for re-invention and creative adaptation of innovations. This new strategy was explored for the development of a new generic competency framework for a harmonised European curriculum in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The generic competency framework was developed through action research. Data were collected by four European stakeholder groups (patients, nurses, midwives and hospital boards), using a variety of methods. Subsequently, the data were analysed further in consensus discussions with European specialists and trainees in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. These discussions ensured that the framework provides guidance, is specialty-specific, and that implementation in all European countries could be feasible. The presented generic competency framework identifies four domains: ‘Patient-centred care’, ‘Teamwork’, ‘System-based practice’ and ‘Personal and professional development’. For each of these four domains, guiding competencies were defined. The new generic competency framework is supported by European specialists and trainees in Obstetrics and Gynaecology, as well as by their European stakeholders. According to change management theories, it seems vital to allow room for re-invention and creative adaptation of the competency framework by medical professionals. Therefore, the generic competency framework offers guidance rather than prescription. The presented strategy for competency framework development offers leads for implementation of competency-based medical education as well as for development of innovations in postgraduate medical education in general. PubDate: 2019-08-26
Abstract: Abstract This article critically examines three assumptions underlying recent efforts to advance interdisciplinary research—defined in this article as communication and collaboration between researchers across academic disciplines (e.g. Sociology, Psychology, Biology)—and examines these assumptions’ implications for health professions education research (HPER). These assumptions are: (1) disciplines are silos that inhibit the free flowing of knowledge across fields and stifle innovative thinking; (2) interdisciplinary research generates a better understanding of the world as it brings together researchers from various fields of expertise capable of tackling complex problems; and (3) interdisciplinary research reduces fragmentation across groups of researchers by eliminating boundaries. These assumptions are among the new beliefs shaping the contemporary academic arena; they orient academics’ and university administrators’ decisions toward expanding interdisciplinary research and training, but without solid empirical evidence. This article argues that the field of HPER has largely adopted the premises of interdisciplinary research but has not yet debated the potential effects of organizing around these premises. The authors hope to inspire members of the HPER community to critically examine the ubiquitous discourse promoting interdisciplinarity, and engage in reflection about the future of the field informed by evidence rather than by unsubstantiated assumptions. For example: Should research centres and graduate programs in HPER encourage the development of interdisciplinary or disciplinary-trained researchers' Should training predominantly focus on methods and methodologies or draw more on disciplinary-based knowledge' What is the best route toward increasing the field’s profile within academia and attracting the best students and researchers to engage in HPER' These are questions that merit attention at the current juncture as the future of the HPER field relies on decisions made in the present time. PubDate: 2019-08-20
Abstract: Abstract Interprofessional teamwork between healthcare professionals is integral to the delivery of safe high-quality patient care in all settings. Recent reforms of medical education curricula incorporate specific educational opportunities that aim to foster successful interprofessional collaboration and teamwork. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of curriculum reform on medical students’ perceptions of their interactions and team-working with nurses. We gathered data from 12 semi-structured individual narrative interviews with a purposive sample of male (n = 6) and female (n = 6) medical students from fourth year (n = 6 following an integrated curriculum) and fifth year (n = 6 following a traditional curriculum). Data were subject to narrative analysis which was undertaken using NVivo software. Overall, there was no notable difference in the responses of the participants on the traditional and integrated curricula about their interactions and team work with nurses. However, the introduction of an integrated medical curriculum was viewed positively but a lack of interprofessional education with nursing students, removal of a nursing placement and shorter clinical placements were perceived as lost opportunities for the development of educationally beneficial relationships. The participants reported that nurses play a number of roles in clinical practice which underpin patient safety including being medical educators who provide a valuable source of support for medical students. The participants highlighted different factors that could hinder or foster effective working relationships such as a lack of understanding of nurses’ different professional roles and mutual respect. Medical education needs to provide students with more structured opportunities to work with and learn from nurses in clinical practice. Further research could explore how to foster positive relationships between medical students and nurses. PubDate: 2019-08-07
Abstract: Abstract Effective health workforce preparation is critical to the health of those who stand to benefit from its services. Emerging dietitians can provide important insights on an evolving workforce that is well-placed to advance future global health. This study aimed to explore a national sample of dietetics graduates’ experiences of, and challenges faced in, dietetics workforce preparation and preparedness in Australia. An interpretive description methodology guided this study whereby researchers interpreted the meanings that participants attributed to their experiences. Twenty dietitians (graduated within the last 2 years) were purposively sampled from across Australia and detailed insights were obtained through semi-structured interviews. A multi-analyst approach employing thematic and template analysis, enabled five themes to be identified across the data set. These included: (1) being held back; (2) chasing the prize; (3) valuing real learning; (4) easing the transition; and (5) encountering influencers. While graduates appreciated their preparation, they were not empowered or equipped to embrace opportunities in diverse and emerging areas of dietetics practice. Graduates were challenged by the competitive landscape of securing obvious job opportunities and by a lack of support in transitioning into the workforce. Practice exposures and encounters with influential dietitians were highly valued. Research on role-emerging dietetics placements along with enhanced support mechanisms for novice dietitians is urgently required to ensure appropriate alignment between future dietetics preparation and practice. Obtaining insights into health professional graduates’ experiences of their education can be used to ensure that emerging health workforces are relevant and responsive to future market needs. PubDate: 2019-08-05
Abstract: Abstract Feedback can improve students’ learning and performance on clinical placements, yet students are often dissatisfied with the process. Attempts to improve feedback frequently focus on faculty development programs without addressing learners’ capabilities to engage with feedback. For feedback to be effective, students need to understand its processes and to translate this into practice. Developing student feedback literacy may enhance feedback engagement and, therefore, learning outcomes. This qualitative interview study aimed to problematise student feedback literacy in the healthcare setting, from the learner’s perspective. Before commencing placements, 105 healthcare students at an Australian teaching hospital participated in a feedback literacy program. After their placements, 27 students engaged in semi-structured interviews to explore their feedback experiences. Informed by workplace learning theory, interview transcripts were analysed using the framework method of qualitative analysis. Students reported reframing feedback as a process they could initiate and engage in, rather one they were subjected to. When they took an intentional stance, students noted that feedback conversations generated plans for improvement which they were enacting. However, students had to work hard against orthodox feedback expectations and habits in healthcare. They privileged intraprofessional supervisor feedback over interprofessional practitioners, patients, or peers. Findings suggest that student engagement with feedback can be augmented with focussed retraining. However, further research examining the structural and cultural influences on students’ capacity to be active in workplace feedback is warranted. PubDate: 2019-08-03
Abstract: Abstract The purpose of this study was to evaluate two online instructional design features, namely adaptation to learner prior knowledge and use of questions to enhance interactivity in online portrayals of physician–patient encounters, in the context of instructing surgical specialists to deliver perioperative tobacco interventions. An online learning module on perioperative tobacco control was developed, in formats incorporating permutations of adaptive/non-adaptive and high/low interactivity (i.e., 2 × 2 factorial design). Participants (a national sample of US anesthesiology residents) were randomly assigned to module format. Primary outcomes included tobacco knowledge, time to complete the module, and self-efficacy in delivering tobacco interventions. One hundred fourteen residents completed the module, which required a median of 60 min (interquartile range 49, 138). The difference in post-module tobacco knowledge score was similar for adaptive and non-adaptive formats [mean difference 0.3 of 10 possible (95% CI − 0.3, 1.0), p = 0.25] but time was shorter for the adaptive format [− 7 min (95% CI − 14, 0), p = 0.01] and knowledge efficiency (knowledge score divided by time) was higher [0.08 units (95% 0.03, 0.14), p = 0.004]. The level of interactivity had no significant effect on self-efficacy [− 0.1 on a 5-point scale (95% CI − 0.3, 0.1), p = 0.50] in delivering tobacco interventions (both outcomes using 5-point scales). Adapting online instruction to learners’ prior knowledge appears to improve the efficiency of learning; adaptation should be implemented when feasible. Adding features that encourage learner interaction in an online course does not necessarily improve learning outcomes. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract Several studies have demonstrated that medical students and doctors rank specialties differently in terms of perceived status and prestige. At the same time some of the specialties have problems with recruiting and retaining staff. This study aimed to understand what constitutes status and prestige in the medical field and how it influences medical doctors’ choice of specialty. By using a sociological perspective and applying Bourdieu’s theoretical concepts of field, symbolic capital and perceived status, we analysed young doctors’ journeys towards their chosen specialty. We conducted 15 in-depth semi-structured interviews. The data was analysed using content analysis. The findings suggest that medical specialties carry different social status. In the field of power, surgery is seen as the most prestigious of all specialties. However, in the future it might be a less attractive choice when young doctors tend to view their profession less as an identity and more like a job. For specialties perceived as low status, the challenge is to raise popularity by better describing to young doctors the characteristics and advantages of these specialties. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract Feedback on clinical performance of residents is seen as a fundamental element in postgraduate medical education. Although literature on feedback in medical education is abundant, many supervisors struggle with providing this feedback and residents experience feedback as insufficiently constructive. With a detailed analysis of real-world feedback conversations, this study aims to contribute to the current literature by deepening the understanding of how feedback on residents’ performance is provided, and to formulate recommendations for improvement of feedback practice. Eight evaluation meetings between program directors and residents were recorded in 2015–2016. These meetings were analyzed using conversation analysis. This is an ethno-methodological approach that uses a data-driven, iterative procedure to uncover interactional patterns that structure naturally occurring, spoken interaction. Feedback in our data took two forms: feedback as a unidirectional activity and feedback as a dialogic activity. The unidirectional feedback activities prevailed over the dialogic activities. The two different formats elicit different types of resident responses and have different implications for the progress of the interaction. Both feedback formats concerned positive as well as negative feedback and both were often mitigated by the participants. Unidirectional feedback and mitigating or downplaying feedback is at odds with the aim of feedback in medical education. Dialogic feedback avoids the pitfall of a program director-dominated conversation and gives residents the opportunity to take ownership of their strengths and weaknesses, which increases chances to change resident behavior. On the basis of linguistic analysis of our real-life data we suggest implications for feedback conversations. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract There is an ongoing debate regarding the cause of diagnostic errors. One view is that errors result from unconscious application of cognitive heuristics; the alternative is that errors are a consequence of knowledge deficits. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of checklists that (a) identify and address cognitive biases or (b) promote knowledge retrieval, as a means to reduce errors in ECG interpretation. Novice postgraduate year (PGY) 1 emergency medicine and internal medicine residents (n = 40) and experienced cardiology fellows (PGY 4–6) (n = 21) were randomly allocated to three conditions: a debiasing checklist, a content (knowledge) checklist, or control (no checklist) to be used while interpreting 20 ECGs. Half of the ECGs were deliberately engineered to predispose to bias. Diagnostic performance under either checklist intervention was not significantly better than the control. As expected, more errors occurred when cases were designed to induce bias (F = 96.9, p < 0.0001). There was no significant interaction between the instructional condition and level of learner. Checklists attempting to help learners identify cognitive bias or mobilize domain-specific knowledge did not have an overall effect in reducing diagnostic errors in ECG interpretation, although they may help novices. Even when cognitive biases are deliberately inserted in cases, cognitive debiasing checklists did not improve participants’ performance. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract Studies have continuously shown that fewer women than men achieve leadership positions in academic medicine. In the current study we explored gender differences in clinical position among academic physicians at three university hospitals, each in a different European country. These countries, Sweden, the Netherlands and Austria, differ in terms of gender equality. We analyzed whether the number of children, working hours or publications could explain gender differences in physicians’ clinical position. In this cross-sectional questionnaire study 1333 (54% female) physicians participated. Physicians were asked about their gender, age, number of children, working hours and clinical position. We used structural equation models to explore the influence of gender on the physicians’ clinical position in each of the three countries. We explored whether the association between gender and clinical position could be explained by number of children, working hours or publication activity. The analyses revealed that at all three university hospitals gender influenced clinical position. These gender differences in clinical position could be partly explained by gender differences in publication activity. Female physicians as compared to male physicians were likely to publish fewer articles, and in turn these lower publication numbers were associated with lower clinical positions. The number of children or working hours did not explain gender differences in publication activity or clinical position. Therefore, factors other than unequal allocation of household labor, such as the academic working environment, may still disproportionately disadvantage women’s progress, even at universities in countries with high rates of gender equality such as Sweden. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract Pre-class preparation is a crucial component of team-based learning (TBL). Lack of preparation hinders both individual learning and team performance during TBL. The purpose of the present study was to explore how the grading of the individual readiness assurance test (iRAT) can affect pre-class preparation, iRAT performance and performance in the end-of-year examination. Using a quasi-experimental design, Year 1 and 2 students’ download frequency for their pre-class materials, performance on iRAT and examination were examined under two conditions; (1) under which the iRAT was graded and (2) under which the iRAT was ungraded. Medical students (N = 220) from three cohorts were included in the study. Differences between both conditions were tested by means of six separate ANCOVAs, using medical school entry test scores as the covariate to account for potential cohort effects. Results revealed that students were downloading more pre-class materials prior to their TBL sessions, and were performed significantly better on iRAT when their performance was graded, even after controlling for cohort effects. Analysis of covariance demonstrated that performance on iRAT also appeared to affect performance on their examination scores. The results of the study suggest that grading has a positive effect on students’ iRAT scores. Implications for TBL are discussed. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract There is a widespread consensus about the need for accreditation systems for evaluating post-graduate medical education programs, but accreditation systems differ substantially across countries. A cross-country comparison of accreditation systems could provide valuable input into policy development processes. We reviewed the accreditation systems of five countries: The United States, Canada, The United Kingdom, Germany and Israel. We used three information sources: a literature review, an online search for published information and applications to some accreditation authorities. We used template analysis for coding and identification of major themes. All five systems accredit according to standards, and basically apply the same accreditation tools: site-visits, annual data collection and self-evaluations. Differences were found in format of standards and specifications, the application of tools and accreditation consequences. Over a 20-year period, the review identified a three-phased process of evolution—from a process-based accreditation system, through an adaptation phase, until the employment of an outcome-based accreditation system. Based on the five-system comparison, we recommend that accrediting authorities: broaden the consequences scale; reconsider the site-visit policy; use multiple data sources; learn from other countries’ experiences with the move to an outcome-based system and take the division of roles into account. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract Within the expansion of postgraduate educational qualifications for health professionals, graduate attributes have become important markers of outcomes and value. However, it is not clear how or when graduate attributes develop, or how they are applied in professional practice after graduation. We interviewed 17 graduates from two online Master’s programmes to explore their perceptions of how postgraduate study had influenced their practice and professional identity. Our thematic analysis produced three main themes (academic voice, infectious curiosity, and expanding worldview) which reflected changes in the participants’ confidence, attitude, perspective, and agency across professional and academic settings. We then conducted a secondary phase of analysis using Bourdieu’s concepts of ‘field’, ‘capital’, and ‘habitus’. While graduate attributes have been conceptualised as the context-independent acquisition of traits that can be employed by individuals, Bourdieu’s framework highlights their relational qualities: they are caught up in the cultural history and context of the student/professional, the reputation of the awarding institution, and the graduate’s location within a network of professional peers. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract More than 100 years ago, Osler inspired educators to consider health professions education (HPE) as intricately reliant on patients. Since that time, patient involvement in HPE has taken on many different meanings. The result is a disparate body of literature that is challenging to search, making it difficult to determine how to continue to build knowledge in the field. To address this problem, we conducted a review of the literature on patient involvement in HPE using a meta-narrative approach. The aim of the review was to synthesize how questions of patient involvement in HPE have been considered across various research traditions and over time. In this paper, we focus on three scholarly communities concerned with various interpretations of patient involvement in HPE—patient as teachers, real patients as standardized patients, and bedside learning. Focus on these three research communities served as a way to draw out various meta-narratives in which patients are thought of in particular ways, specific rationales for involvement are offered, and different research traditions are put to use in the field. Attending to the intersections between these meta-narratives, we focus on the potentially incommensurate ways in which “active” patient engagement is considered within the broader field and the possible implications. We end by reflecting on these tensions and what they might mean for the future of patient involvement, specifically patient involvement as part of future iterations of competency based education. PubDate: 2019-08-01
Abstract: Abstract This paper sheds light on an intellectual dispute on the purpose of problem-based learning that took place in the 1970s between two major figures in the history of PBL: Howard S Barrows from McMaster University and Henk Schmidt from Maastricht University. Using historical evidence from archive materials, oral history accounts and contemporary publications, the paper shows that at the core of the dispute was their divergent understanding of cognitive psychology. On the one hand, Barrows espoused hypothetico-deduction, and on the other, Henk Schmidt was a proponent of constructivism. The paper shows how the dispute played out both in the scientific literature and in the divergent practice of PBL at McMaster and Maastricht and continues to affect the way PBL is done today. PubDate: 2019-08-01
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