TY - JOUR
T1 - Surgical skills acquisition
T2 - Performance of students trained in a rural longitudinal integrated clerkship and those from a traditional block clerkship on a standardized examination using simulated patients
AU - Brooks, Kathleen D.
AU - Acton, Robert D.
AU - Hemesath, Karla
AU - Schmitz, Connie C.
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2014 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2014
Y1 - 2014
N2 - Objectives Rural longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) programs for third-year medical students provide strong educational curricula and can nurture interest in rural surgical practice. Students learn technical skills in an apprenticeship model. Variability in instruction and patient experiences across sites, coupled with a lack of simulation facilities, raise some concerns about technical skill development. To explore the adequacy of skills acquisition for students in the University of Minnesota Rural Physician Associate Program (RPAP), this study compared RPAP students' performance on a scenario-based Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS) with that of traditional surgery block clerkship students (Course 7500). Design, Setting, and Participants This is a nonexperimental post-only study. All enrolled students (n = 254) completed the OSATS examination. Students in the Course 7500 (n = 222) completed 15 hours of simulation skills training and supervised practice during their 6-week clerkship. RPAP students (n = 32) completed 3 hours of skills training before their 9-month rural assignment. Both groups had access to comprehensive online materials. Mean OSATS checklist, global rating, and total scores were compared at the end of training using t tests (p < 0.05). Self-reported OR and clinical experiences were explored. Results Both groups did well on the OSATS. There were no statistical differences in completion time, checklist scores, mean global ratings, or total scores. RPAP students reported significantly more days in the OR, surgery cases, and first assists. Experience with OSATS tasks reported by RPAP students during clinical rotations correlated with their OSATS performance. Conclusion This study supports the viability of the LIC model for fundamental skills acquisition when augmented with introductory simulation skills training and online resources. It also suggests that simulation fills a training gap for students in a traditional surgery block clerkship program. It opens a dialog about the potential partnership of surgery departments with rural LICs to address rural general surgery shortages. Further research in this aspect is needed.
AB - Objectives Rural longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) programs for third-year medical students provide strong educational curricula and can nurture interest in rural surgical practice. Students learn technical skills in an apprenticeship model. Variability in instruction and patient experiences across sites, coupled with a lack of simulation facilities, raise some concerns about technical skill development. To explore the adequacy of skills acquisition for students in the University of Minnesota Rural Physician Associate Program (RPAP), this study compared RPAP students' performance on a scenario-based Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS) with that of traditional surgery block clerkship students (Course 7500). Design, Setting, and Participants This is a nonexperimental post-only study. All enrolled students (n = 254) completed the OSATS examination. Students in the Course 7500 (n = 222) completed 15 hours of simulation skills training and supervised practice during their 6-week clerkship. RPAP students (n = 32) completed 3 hours of skills training before their 9-month rural assignment. Both groups had access to comprehensive online materials. Mean OSATS checklist, global rating, and total scores were compared at the end of training using t tests (p < 0.05). Self-reported OR and clinical experiences were explored. Results Both groups did well on the OSATS. There were no statistical differences in completion time, checklist scores, mean global ratings, or total scores. RPAP students reported significantly more days in the OR, surgery cases, and first assists. Experience with OSATS tasks reported by RPAP students during clinical rotations correlated with their OSATS performance. Conclusion This study supports the viability of the LIC model for fundamental skills acquisition when augmented with introductory simulation skills training and online resources. It also suggests that simulation fills a training gap for students in a traditional surgery block clerkship program. It opens a dialog about the potential partnership of surgery departments with rural LICs to address rural general surgery shortages. Further research in this aspect is needed.
KW - clerkship
KW - clinical competence
KW - curriculum
KW - educational measurement
KW - general surgery
KW - longitudinal integrated clerkship
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jsurg.2013.08.008
DO - 10.1016/j.jsurg.2013.08.008
M3 - Article
C2 - 24602717
AN - SCOPUS:84895543201
SN - 1931-7204
VL - 71
SP - 246
EP - 253
JO - Journal of surgical education
JF - Journal of surgical education
IS - 2
ER -