Profiling medical specialties and informing aspiring physicians: a data-driven approach
AbstractA detailed, unbiased perspective of the inter-relations among medical fields could help students make informed decisions on their future career plans. Using a data-driven approach, the inter-relations among different medical fields were decomposed and clustered based on the similarity of their working environments.Publicly available, aggregate databases were merged into a single rich dataset containing demographic, working environment and remuneration information for physicians across Canada. These data were collected from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, the Canadian Medical Association, and the Inst...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - September 12, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

“Juggle the different hats we wear”: enacted strategies for negotiating boundaries in overlapping relationships
In this study, we examined how physicians are navigating overlapping personal (non-sexual) and professional relationships with the goal to inform teaching and curricula on professional boundaries. Following constructivist grounded theory methodology, 22 physicians who had returned to their rural, northern and/or remote hometown in British Columbia, Canada or who had lived and practised in a such a community for decades were interviewed in iterative cycles informed by analysis. We identified four strategies described by physicians for regulating multiple roles within overlapping relationships: (a)signalling the appropriate ...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - September 7, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Using latent class growth analysis to detect group developmental trajectories in preclinical medical education
AbstractMedical educators and programs are deeply interested in understanding and projecting the longitudinal developmental trajectories of medical students after these students are matriculated into medical schools so appropriate resources and interventions can be provided to support students ’ learning and progression during the process. As students have different characteristics and they do not learn and progress at the same pace, it is important to identify student subgroups and address their academic needs to create more equitable learning opportunities. Using latent class growth a nalysis, this study explored stude...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - September 7, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Commentary on “supervisory knowing in practice across medical specialties”
AbstractIn the dynamic, non-linear world of medical education, balancing patient care and trainee learning is a complex task. This commentary responds to the original article by Noble et al. (2023), which challenges the perceived tension between patient care and trainee learning in the surgical environment and advocates for their co-occurrence across various medical specialties. The article explores supervisory practices across disciplines and proposes a holistic reconceptualization of clinical supervision in surgery. From various perspectives, the importance of hands-on opportunities in the operation theatre and the chall...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - September 5, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Leveraging the health equity implementation framework to foster an equity focus in medical education
We present three examples of common topics in internal medicine, contextualized by the three equity domains of the HEIF. We additionally acknowledge the limitations of this framework as a research tool with complex features that may not be suitable for brief teaching in the clinical environment. We propose a 360-degree learner assessment to ensure implementation of this framework is successful. By encouraging trainees to explore the narrative experiences of their patients and examine their own implicit biases, the HEIF provides a structure to address gaps in knowledge about delivering equitable care. (Source: Advances in H...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - September 5, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

An experimental comparison of multiple-choice and short-answer questions on a high-stakes test for medical students
This study compares the difficulty, discrimination, and time requirements for the two formats when examinees responded as part of a large-scale, high-stakes assessment. Seventy-one MCQs were converted to SAQs. These matched items were randomly assigned to examinees completing a high-stakes assessment of internal medicine. No examinee saw the same item in both formats. Items administered in the SAQ format were generally more difficult than items in the MCQ format. The discrimination index for SAQs was modestly higher than that for MCQs and response times were substantially higher for SAQs. These results support the intercha...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - September 4, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Sociomaterial perspective as applied in interprofessional education and collaborative practice: a scoping review
This article aimed to examine existing literature that discusses the application of sociomaterial perspectives in IPE and IPC. A scoping review was conducted following Arksey and O ’Malley’s framework to explore the extent within the current body of knowledge that discuss how sociomaterial perspective is applied in IPE and IPC practices. A systematic database search was performed in September 2021 to retrieve literature published from 2007 onwards, with forty-three papers meeting the inclusion criteria. These papers included research articles, book chapters, conference papers and commentaries, with the majority origina...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 30, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

How does training format and clinical education model impact fidelity and confidence in a speech-language pathology rotation?
AbstractClinical education rotations typically involve an initial training phase followed by supervised clinical practice. However, little research has explored the separate contributions of each component to the development of student confidence and treatment fidelity. The dual purpose of this study was to compare the impact of clinical training format (synchronous vs. asynchronous) and education model (traditional vs. collaborative) on student confidence and treatment fidelity. Thirty-six speech-language pathology graduate students completed this two-phase study during a one-term clinical rotation. Phase 1 investigated t...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 25, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Systematic review of distributed practice and retrieval practice in health professions education
AbstractTo determine the effect of distributed practice (spacing out of study over time) and retrieval practice (recalling information from memory) on academic grades in health professions education and to summarise a range of interventional variables that may affect study outcomes. A systematic search of seven databases in November 2022 which were screened according to predefined inclusion criteria. The Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument (MERSQI) and Newcastle-Ottawa Scale-Education (NOS-E) were used to critically appraise eligible articles. A summary of interventional variables includes article content t...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 24, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Correction to: Seeking Utopia: a response to “Oncology residents’ experiences of decision-making in a clinical learning environment: a phenomenological study”
(Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education)
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 24, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Associations between education policies and the geographic disposition of family physicians: a retrospective observational study of McMaster University education data
AbstractThe maldistribution of family physicians challenges equitable primary care access in Canada. TheTheory of Social Attachment suggests that preferential selection and distributed training interventions have potential in influencing physician disposition. However, evaluations of these approaches have focused predominantly on rural underservedness, with little research considering physician disposition in other underserved communities. Accordingly, this study investigated the association between the locations from which medical graduates apply to medical school, their undergraduate preclerkship, clerkship, residency ex...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 15, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Equity, diversity, and …exclusion? A national mixed methods study of “belonging” in Canadian undergraduate medical education
AbstractEquity, diversity, and inclusion remain a prominent focus in medical schools, yet the phenomenon of “belonging” has arguably been overlooked. Little is known regarding how belonging is experienced by medical students from groups that face systemic oppression and exclusion. We employed a sequential explanatory mixed methods design to explore how students from equity-deserving groups (EDGs) expe rience belonging during medical school, including those who are women, racialized, Indigenous, disabled, and 2SLGBTQIA+. First, we conducted a national cross-sectional survey of medical students (N = 480) measuring fo...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 10, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Expert consensus on the attributes and competencies required for rural and remote junior physicians to work effectively in isolated indonesian communities
This study sought to reach a consensus on the attributes and competencies that are viewed as essential and important for working effectively as an early career doctor in rural and remote practice in Indonesia. A two-round Delphi study was conducted by reference to 27 consenting physicians working in rural and remote Indonesia. Forty-three items covering 9 attributes and 34 competencies were sent to these physicians to be rated on a Likert scale ranging from 1 to 5 in terms of their importance for effective rural and remote practice. Nine attributes and 29 competencies progressed to Round 2. All nine attributes and 29 compe...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 9, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

Assessing clinical competence: a multitrait-multimethod matrix construct validity study
AbstractEducation in Doctor of Medicine programs has moved towards an emphasis on clinical competency, with entrustable professional activities providing a framework of learning objectives and outcomes to be assessed within the clinical environment. While the identification and structured definition of objectives and outcomes have evolved, many methods employed to assess clerkship students ’ clinical skills remain relatively unchanged. There is a paucity of medical education research applying advanced statistical design and analytic techniques to investigate the validity of clinical skills assessment. One robust statisti...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 2, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research

The maintenance of classism in medical education: “time” as a form of social capital in first-generation and low-income medical students
This study argues that while all forms of capital are necessary for success,time as a specific form keeps classism in place. Using constructivist grounded theory techniques, we interviewed 48 FGLI students to understand where, why and how they allocated their time, and the perceived impact it had on them. Using open coding and constant comparison, we developed an understanding of FGLI students ’ relationship to time and then contextualized it within larger conversations on howtime is conceptualized in a capitalist system that demands time efficiency, and the activities where time is needed in medical school. When student...
Source: Advances in Health Sciences Education - August 1, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: research