Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development最新文献

Introduction: Effective clinical research training is crucial for advancing medical science and improving patient care. However, current evaluation systems in China often focus on theoretical knowledge, neglecting practical skills and innovation. This study aimed to develop a comprehensive evaluation framework for clinical research training programs using the Delphi consensus method.

Method: A 2-round Delphi method was employed, involving healthcare professionals and educators from top tertiary hospitals and leading academic institutions in China. The first round included 15 participants, and the second round included 19 participants. The evaluation framework was based on the Kirkpatrick model, covering Reaction, Learning, Behavior, and Results dimensions. Indicators were evaluated using a 5-point Likert scale, with consensus defined as a mean significance score ≥3.50 and a coefficient of variation ≤0.25.

Results: In the first round, 9 indicators were excluded and 5 added. In the second round, 26 indicators met consensus criteria. Key indicators included "Relevance of training content" (mean = 4.89, CoV = 0.06), "Degree of knowledge mastery" (mean = 4.58, CoV = 0.13), and "Impact on career development" (mean = 4.53, CoV = 0.15). Other significant indicators were "Timeliness of training information" (mean = 4.84, CoV = 0.08) and "Success rate of applying for scientific research funds" (mean = 4.05, CoV = 0.21).

Discussion: This study developed a comprehensive evaluation framework for clinical research training in China, emphasizing the importance of relevant training content, strong learning outcomes, and long-term professional impact. This framework provides a robust tool to assess and enhance clinical research training programs, ultimately contributing to improved healthcare and medical research. Future work should focus on validating this framework through empirical studies and refining it based on ongoing feedback.

Formalized debriefing after travel is a critical component of medical global health elective rotations (GHERs), but evidence-based processes are lacking, resulting in significant variability among institutions. There is increasing attention to the need for learner debriefing that can address both emotional and cognitive components of their experience. Our multi-institution workgroup reviewed best practices in debriefing simulation-based learning and acute clinical events, the role of narrative reflective writing on learning and professional identity formation, and the unique components of global health debriefing. Utilizing Kern's six-step process of curriculum design, we developed a comprehensive curriculum to support implementation of rigorous post-rotation debriefing in global health education programs. The resulting Understanding Needs in Post-rotation Activities and Coaching Kit modules consist of peer-reviewed activities to address five critical elements of a robust GHER debriefing program. These include institution/organizational structure, learner debrief preparation, conducting the debriefing session (addressing emotional and cognitive components), facilitating mental health support, and bringing experiences back to partner institutions. We outline the piloting process and next steps for curricular evaluation.

Background: Quality improvement (QI) training of subspecialty fellows is an essential component of graduate medical education, yet often delivered in silos within departments through a variety of instructional methodologies.

Objective: We applied project-based learning (PjBL) as a guiding methodology for a QI curriculum for pediatric subspecialty fellows and describe our curriculum development, instructional design, and its implementation.

Methods: We integrated the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Model for Improvement with the 6 key features of PjBL: a driving question, defined learning goals, active participation in educational tasks, collaboration among learners, scaffolding with learning technology, and production of tangible artifacts. The curriculum consisted of workshops followed by application of knowledge to clinical problems through QI projects carried out in their clinical areas. The impact of the curriculum was evaluated by sustainability of fellow-led projects and scholarly output.

Results: From July 2014 through June 2023, 487 pediatric subspecialty fellows participated in 106 QI projects; 80 projects (75%) were sustained for at least 6 months and 65 (61%) were sustained 1 year or longer. Thirty abstracts or posters were presented at regional or national meetings from 21 projects across 11 divisions. Results from six projects were published in peer-reviewed manuscripts.

Conclusions: Our QI curriculum offered fellows practical hands-on learning through sustainable QI projects aligned with their clinical practice, using PjBL as an instructional methodology integrated with the IHI Model for Improvement framework.

Background: Although curricular research training is a critical component of undergraduate medical education, the potential added value of extracurricular research activities remains inadequately investigated. This cross-sectional online survey-based study investigates the impact of combining curricular and extracurricular research training versus curricular training alone on undergraduate medical students' confidence in their research skills, aiming to identify more effective approaches.

Methods: A cross-sectional study using the Students' Confidence in Basic Research Skills Questionnaire was conducted. This newly developed instrument comprises 14 items, each rated on a 5-point Likert scale. Content validity was established by a panel of experts in medical education and research assessment. Pilot testing preceded data collection. Snowball sampling was used to collect responses from 633 clinical-phase students at five of seven medical schools in Palestine. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, general linear model (GLM), and binary logistic regression.

Results: Students who received combined training (n = 394) reported higher mean confidence scores than those receiving curricular training alone (n = 239) (40.1 vs 32.9, p < 0.001); however, both groups scored below the benchmark for adequate confidence. In the GLM, extracurricular training, prior research involvement, and prior publication were independently associated with higher confidence, while fifth-year students reported lower scores than sixth-year students. Gender was not significantly associated. In the sensitivity analysis, prior publication emerged as the only independent factor associated with adequate confidence (aOR = 3.87, 95% CI [1.13, 13.2], p = 0.031).

Conclusion: Combining curricular and extracurricular research training was associated with higher confidence in research skills, yet overall confidence remained suboptimal. Experiential engagement-particularly completing and publishing research-appears central to developing high-level confidence. These findings underscore the need for integrated, practice-oriented research training that enables authentic participation across the full research process, especially in resource-limited educational settings.

Purpose: The virtual flipped classroom (VFC) is a virtual instructional strategy that engages students through active learning strategies and supports both synchronous and asynchronous virtual education components. This study examined the efficacy of the VFC instructional method in a Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation course for physiotherapy students.

Method: In this quasi-experimental study, 16 instructional sessions were randomly assigned to a cohort of 55 fifth-semester physiotherapy students. Based on the nature of the content (theoretical vs practical), 8 sessions were delivered asynchronously using the Virtual Lecture-Based Learning (VLBL) approach, while 8 were delivered through the VFC method. To reduce carryover effects, the 2 instructional methods were alternated weekly with a one-week washout interval. Of the 16 sessions, 10 (5 VLBL and 5 VFC) were randomly selected to include both a pretest and a posttest to assess students' learning progress. After the course, students' satisfaction, attitudes, and knowledge associated with both instructional methods were measured and compared.

Results: Students demonstrated significantly higher overall knowledge, satisfaction, and attitude scores under the VFC approach compared with VLBL (P < .001). Across the 5 assessed sessions, the VFC method also produced significantly higher pretest and posttest scores than VLBL (all P < .001). Although absolute performance was consistently greater in the VFC sessions, pre- to posttest improvement did not differ between methods (P > .05), indicating comparable learning gains. Both instructional methods, however, showed significant gains relative to baseline (all P < .001).

Conclusion: The findings suggest that the VFC is an effective instructional approach for enhancing second-year physiotherapy students' knowledge, satisfaction, and attitudes toward learning.

Interprofessional collaboration (IPC) and interprofessional education (IPE) are two concepts that have gained interest during the last decade, for the positive change they enable, especially in clinical healthcare settings. Despite this surge of attention, there are few studies that systematically analyse interventions aiming at fostering IPC/IPE within clinical teams. Developing additional knowledge around factors that impact the efficiency of similarly targeted interventions can help improve the quality of patient care in clinical settings. To this end, the paper offers a systematic, realist review of the IPC/IPE interventions outlined in the literature, seeking to better understand how the context and mechanisms which shape these interventions interact to produce the desired outcomes (ie, improve IPC). Electronic databases searched were PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Web of Science. Seventeen articles met the inclusion criteria and were analysed independently by two reviewers following the RAMESES guidelines. The authors propose an explanatory model for the interventions examined and a conceptual framework that can be used as a starting point for the study of effective IPC/IPE interventions within clinical settings. Finally, this realist review highlights discrepancies in the terminology and methodology used to study similar cases, which will need to be systematically tackled by future research to further our understanding of those cases and of key elements of IPC/IPE in clinical working groups.

Background: Medical students' education is strongly influenced by learning experiences with their preceptors. Continuing education programs (CEPs) are an excellent vehicle for training preceptors who supervise students in clinical settings. Continuing education programs sometimes include innovative teaching strategies such as cinema education, meaning the use of film in medical education. This study explores the use of cinema education in training medical preceptors, focusing on the type of cinema education used, the content presented, its application and its evaluation.

Method: This review was planned and conducted in accordance with the steps described by Arksey and O'Malley, and in compliance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews extension for Scoping Reviews guidelines. Primary sources searched included Medline, Embase, CINAHL, APA PsychINFO, ERIC, Education Source, and Scopus. All studies conducted with preceptors were included. All research designs detailing the use of cinema education in training for preceptors were considered. The articles were processed and evaluated by 2 pairs of reviewers using the COVIDENCE tool and then synthesized in narrative form.

Results: Of the 4719 studies reviewed, 14 were selected for extraction. This scoping review shows that cinema education is used chiefly in the form of video mini-series. The videos are generally viewed remotely in asynchronous mode, and they typically feature simulated clinical situations designed to develop preceptors' feedback skills. The videos are normally evaluated through post-screening surveys.

Conclusion: This scoping review examined the type (format), content, application, and evaluation of cinema education in training programs for medical preceptors. The predominant format consisted of a series of video clips depicting clinical scenarios. Most of the videos were designed to enable preceptors to develop their feedback skills. The videos were mainly viewed remotely in asynchronous mode. Future studies could assess how effective cinema education is in training medical preceptors.

Objective: To assess faculty members' adherence to professional teaching ethics from the perspective of basic medical science students at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences (AJUMS), Iran, and to explore the influence of demographic variables on these perceptions.

Methods: This cross-sectional study, conducted in 2025, included 300 basic medical science students selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using the validated Persian version of the Sobhani-Nejad Professional Teaching Ethics Questionnaire (2016), comprising 42 items across six domains scored on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = very low to 5 = very high; total possible score range: 42-210).

Results: The overall mean ethics score was 159.11 (SD = 52.86; 95% CI: 153.14-165.08), indicating moderately high perceived ethical conduct. The highest domain score was for "personality traits" (M = 62.85, SD = 20.81), and the lowest for "teaching methodology" (M = 16.20, SD = 5.50). Gender, marital status, and academic year were significant predictors of overall scores. Although statistically significant, most effect sizes were small to moderate.

Conclusion: Although faculty teaching ethics are generally satisfactory, domain-specific weaknesses and demographic variations highlight the need for targeted faculty development programs focused on pedagogical skills and inclusive practices.

Background: Canadian family medicine (FM) residency programs are required to provide teaching opportunities to trainees to enable the development of teaching skills in order for residents to become the next generation of FM teachers. The College of Family Physicians of Canada's Fundamental Teaching Activities (FTA) Framework outlines the roles, tasks, and activities expected of FM teachers across three domains: Clinical Preceptor, Teacher Outside the Clinical Setting, and Educational Leader. The purpose of this study was to describe resident teaching opportunities within a Canadian FM residency program and examine the degree to which they align with the domains of the FTA Framework.

Methods: This was a qualitative study employing one-on-one semistructured virtual interviews with 10 rural and urban FM residents and 12 academic teachers from May 2021 to May 2022. Interviews explored FM resident teaching opportunities, including the setting where the teaching occurred, who the learners were, and the teaching topics. Qualitative, iterative thematic data analysis techniques were used with a coding template.

Results: Mapping resident teaching opportunities onto the FTA Framework required some modifications. The Clinical Preceptor domain was refined to Clinical Teacher; the Teacher Outside the Clinical Setting domain remained unchanged; and a new domain of Educational Collaborator emerged. Resident teaching opportunities spanned diverse settings, including outpatient clinics, inpatient hospital wards, large/small groups, and one-on-one sessions. These activities included direct clinical teaching, curriculum development, and peer education.

Conclusions: The study findings suggest that a FM resident-specific teaching framework is warranted to help guide residents and academic teachers to optimize FM resident teaching opportunities.

Purpose: The medical profession has been regarded as a vocation, valued both socially and economically. This study explored the importance of high-paying profession as a motive for applying to medical school between 1988 and 2023, and its relation to physicians' postgraduate training goals.

Material and methods: The data comprised of eight repeated cross-sectional surveys conducted in five-year intervals from 1988 to 2023. Respondents graduated 2 to 11 years before each survey (total n = 11 638; min 1177-max 1795 per survey; average response rate 55%). The association between valuing high-paying profession and pursuing professional or scientific postgraduate education was analyzed using ordinal logistic regression.

Major findings: A smaller proportion of those who entered medical studies motivated by the prospect of a high-paying profession engaged in doctoral research (OR 0.93; 95% CI 0.89-0.97) and specialization (OR 0.88; LV 0.78-0.98) compared to those motivated by other reasons. Men were more likely than women to specialize within 2 to 11 years after graduation (OR 1.58; 95% CI 1.47-1.70), and male gender also increased the likelihood of pursuing scientific postgraduate education (OR 1.67; 95% CI 1.53-1.82).

Conclusions: A growing emphasis on income among applicants could increase the shortage of specialists and reduce the number of physicians engaging in scientific research.