Innovations in anaesthesia medical student clerkships

Characteristics of good clinical teachers in anesthesiology from medical students' perspective: a qualitative descriptive study

PURPOSE

Learning needs are influenced by the stage of learning and medical specialty. We sought to investigate the characteristics of a good clinical teacher in anesthesiology from the medical students' perspective.

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative descriptive study to analyze written comments of medical students about their clinical teachers' performances. Our analysis strategy was the inductive content analysis method. The results are reported as a descriptive summary with major themes as the final product.

RESULTS

Our study identified four themes. The first theme, teachers' individual characteristics, includes characteristics that are usually more related to students' subjective experiences and feelings. The second theme, teachers' characteristics that advance student learning, seems to be one of the most important contributions to learning because it increases the practice of procedural skills. The third theme, teachers' characteristics that prepare students for success, shows characteristics that facilitate students' learning by promoting a healthy and safe environment. Lastly, the fourth theme, characteristics related to teaching approaches, includes characteristics that can guide clinical teachers more objectively.

CONCLUSION

Our analysis of the written comments of medical students identified many characteristics of a good clinical teacher that were organized in four different themes. These themes contribute to expand on existing understandings of clinical teaching in the anesthesiology clerkship environment, and add new interpretations that can be reflected upon and explored by other clinical educators.

Undergraduate education in anaesthesia, intensive care, pain, and perioperative medicine: The development of a national curriculum framework

INTRODUCTION

The study describes the development of the first UK national framework to guide undergraduate education in anesthesia, perioperative medicine, critical care, and pain medicine.

METHODS

We followed an inclusive process of curriculum design aiming to promote high-level learning amongst students. We conducted telephone interviews with senior anesthetic educators at 33 UK medical schools to establish current provision and practice. We then held a consultative national workshop for educators, using focus group interviews to set broad aims for the final framework and gather information.

RESULT

Anesthesia undergraduate educators demonstrated a conceptual focus that moves beyond simple acquisition of knowledge to one geared to encouraging clinical behavioral change in learners to equip them for practice as new doctors. Respondents also highlighted the opportunities for promoting spiral, integrated, and longitudinal learning within the undergraduate curriculum. We also formulated eight key domains of practice in anesthesia and critical care and mapped 63 of the 106 General Medical Council's Outcomes for Graduates against these domains, and created a brief suggested syllabus.

CONCLUSIONS

The framework aims to provide support and guidance for medical schools in the development of competent, well-rounded doctors who are able to provide safe, patient-centered care in all areas of medical practice.

A peer-designed selective in anesthesiology, critical care, and perioperative medicine for first- and second-year medical students

STUDY OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to design and implement a preclinical elective (termed selective) in anesthesiology, critical care, and perioperative medicine and to report survey results assessing the impact of the selective on first- and second-year medical students' understanding of basic concepts, comfort with procedural skills, and interest in the specialty.

DESIGN

Preinvention and postintervention survey evaluation was used as the design of this study.

SETTING

The study was conducted at Mayo Medical School and Mayo Clinic.

PARTICIPANTS

The participants in this study are first- and second-year medical students.

INTERVENTIONS

A 1-week introductory anesthesiology curriculum was developed to include didactic sessions, shadowing experiences, lunch and dinner panels, mentorship and networking opportunities, and procedural workshops in airway management, ultrasound, and vascular access techniques.

MEASUREMENTS

Preselective and postselective surveys using a 10-point scale (1, strongly disagree; 10, strongly agree) were administered 1 week before and after the selective.

MAIN RESULTS

A total of 8 students participated in the selective, with a 100% survey response rate. Students reported significant increases for all survey questions regarding basic concepts and skills. The largest increases were reported in comfort with airway management skills, understanding of the perioperative surgical home model, and vascular access skills. All participants indicated a higher likelihood of pursuing anesthesiology as a career and attributed their increased interest in anesthesiology to the selective.

CONCLUSIONS

This new selective was successful in giving first- and second-year medical students a comprehensive overview of anesthesiology and increasing medical student interest in the specialty. The success of this selective leads to promising belief that similar peer-designed educational experiences can be developed at other medical schools to improve education and interest in this area of medicine.

Anaesthesia priorities for Australian and New Zealand medical school curricula: a Delphi consensus of academic anaesthetists

The role of anaesthetists has expanded and evolved to include critical care, perioperative and pain medicine and general clinical skills, as well as operating theatre-based clinical anaesthesia. Across Australia and New Zealand, these topics are taught to varying degrees, however no uniform curriculum or standardisation exists between universities. In this study, we used a Delphi technique to develop consensus-based priorities to guide medical educators when reviewing and implementing student anaesthesia curricula. A range of appropriate content has been defined, as well as details relating to duration, timing, teaching environment, faculty, feedback and assessment methods. Future enquiry to assess the efficacy of future and current teaching practices is needed to facilitate continued improvement.

Integrating Structured Learning and Scholarly Activities into Clerkship Rotations: A Win-Win for Students and Preceptors

Objective: To merge scholarly activity into the curriculum developed for medical students electing a rotation in wound care and/or dermatology. Approach: The authors adapted the unique wound care curriculum developed for medical student rotators and residents to incorporate structured scholarly projects, opportunities for mentorship, and feedback for continued improvement. Results: Benefits have been observed to both students and to the clinic, as reflected by online survey results, increased productivity in the form of posters and manuscripts, and opportunities for professional networking. Discussion: Rotations and clerkships can be transformed from haphazard, bystander observational experiences to active participation that enhances comprehension and retention, while also providing benefits to preceptors. Innovation: Integration between research, education, and clinical activities in a structured way can provide opportunity for enhanced learning experiences and promote the concept of evidence-based practice. Conclusion: With observed benefits to students, researchers, and staff in this clinical setting, other clerkship rotation settings should consider an integrated and structured approach to learning, which includes scholarly activities. Further rigorous program evaluation is necessary to further quantify preliminary positive feedback regarding this approach.

Assessment of current undergraduate anesthesia course in a Saudi University

Background:

The assessment of the anesthesia course in our university comprises Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs), in conjunction with portfolio and multiple-choice questions (MCQ). The objective of this study was to evaluate the outcome of different forms of anesthesia course assessment among 5^th year medical students in our university, as well as study the influence of gender on student performance in anesthesia.

Methods:

We examined the performance of 154, 5^th year medical students through OSCE, portfolios, and MCQ.

Results:

The score ranges in the portfolio, OSCE, and MCQs were 16-24, 4.2-28.9, and 15.5-44.5, respectively. There was highly significant difference in scores in relation to gender in all assessments other than the written one (P=0.000 for Portfolio, OSCE, and Total exam, whereas P=0.164 for written exam). In the generated linear regression model, OSCE alone could predict 86.4% of the total mark if used alone. In addition, if the score of the written examination is added, OSCE will drop to 57.2% and the written exam will be 56.8% of the total mark.

Conclusions:

This study demonstrates that different clinical methods used to assess medical students during their anesthesia course were consistent and integrated. The performance of female was superior to male in OSCE and portfolio. This information is the basis for improving educational and assessment standards in anesthesiology and for introducing a platform for developing modern learning media in countries with dearth of anesthesia personnel.

Exposure to, understanding of, and interest in interventional radiology in American medical students

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES

The purposes of this study were to determine the degree to which medical students are exposed to interventional radiology (IR) in medical school, to assess their knowledge of the field, and to gauge their interest in IR as a career choice.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

An institutional review board-approved survey was generated using the website www.surveymonkey.com. Medical student participation nationwide was elicited by sending e-mails to administrators of medical schools and radiology residency program directors and asking them to distribute the survey link to their students.

RESULTS

Seven hundred twenty-nine medical students from 21 states responded to the survey. Although 58% of students said they were interested in a hands-on career, only 5.5% of students said they had participated in an IR rotation and only 12.7% were interested in IR. Less than half of the IR domain-related questions used to assess understanding of IR were answered correctly, with greater understanding found among the students who had participated in an IR rotation.

CONCLUSIONS

Exposure to IR in accredited US medical education programs is inconsistent, although interest in the field is moderate among medical students compared with interest in other hands-on specialties. Understanding of IR is limited among the study population. Improved understanding of the field and recruitment could result from greater exposure.