Why medical students choose not to carry out an intercalated BSc : a questionnaire study.

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A survey of factors influencing career preference in new-entrant and exiting medical students from four UK medical schools

Our thanks to Professor Gillian Needham and Dr Murray Lough for their encouragement and support, and their comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript. Our thanks also to NHS Education for Scotland [NES] for funding, and the Scottish Medical Deans Education Group [SMDEG] for supporting this project. We are grateful to all the students who gave their time to complete the survey questionnaire and to those who helped organise and carry out data collection.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A narrative synthesis of qualitative studies conducted to assess patient safety culture in hospital settings.

This review aimed to identify methodological aspects of qualitative studies conducted to assess patient safety culture (PSC) in hospital settings. Searches of Google Scholar (Google LLC, Menlo Park, California, USA), MEDLINE® (National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, Maryland, USA), EMBASE (Elsevier, Amsterdam, Netherlands), PsycINFO (American Psychological Association, Washington, District of Columbia, USA) and Web of Science (Clarivate Analytics, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA) databases were used to identify qualitative articles published between 2000 and 2017 that focused on PSC. A total of 22 studies were included in this review and analysis of methodological approaches showed that most researchers adopted purposive sampling, individual interviews, inductive content and thematic analysis. PSC was affected by factors related to staffing, communication, nonhuman resources, organisation and patient-related factors. Most studies lacked theoretical frameworks. However, many commonalities were found across studies. Therefore, it is recommended that future studies adopt a mixed methods approach to gain a better understanding of PSC

An intercalated BSc degree is associated with higher marks in subsequent medical school examinations

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To compare medical students on a modern MBChB programme who did an optional intercalated degree with their peers who did not intercalate; in particular, to monitor performance in subsequent undergraduate degree exams.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This was a retrospective, observational study of anonymised databases of medical student assessment outcomes. Data were accessed for graduates, University of Aberdeen Medical School, Scotland, UK, from the years 2003 to 2007 (n = 861). The main outcome measure was marks for summative degree assessments taken after intercalating.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of 861 medical students, 154 (17.9%) students did an intercalated degree. After adjustment for cohort, maturity, gender and baseline (3^rdyear) performance in matching exam type, having done an IC degree was significantly associated with attaining high (18–20) common assessment scale (CAS) marks in three of the six degree assessments occurring after the IC students rejoined the course: the 4^thyear written exam (p < 0.001), 4^thyear OSCE (p = 0.001) and the 5^thyear Elective project (p = 0.010).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Intercalating was associated with improved performance in Years 4 and 5 of the MBChB. This improved performance will further contribute to higher academic ranking for Foundation Year posts. Long-term follow-up is required to identify if doing an optional intercalated degree as part of a modern medical degree is associated with following a career in academic medicine.</p

The relationship between school type and academic performance at medical school:A national, multi-cohort study

Acknowledgements We thank UKMED for releasing the data for this project via a competitive bid process. We are grateful to the following for their support of the application to UKMED for this and other research projects: Dr Sally Curtis (University of Southampton, UK), Dr Sandra Nicholson (Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, UK), Professor Peter Johnston (NHS Education for Scotland, UK) and Dr Rhoda MacKenzie (University of Aberdeen, UK). We thank Daniel Smith and Andy Knapton of the General Medical Council of the UK for their support for the application and throughout the project, particularly regarding data linkage and troubleshooting. We thank Dr Gordon Prescott (University of Aberdeen, UK) for the statistical support. Funding This study is part of Ben Kumwenda’s doctoral programme of research funded by the UKCAT Research Panel, of which JC and RG are members.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Examining the diversity of MRCS examiners

Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge Gregory Ayre from the Intercollegiate Committee for Basic Surgical Examinations for his support during this project. Funding Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland. Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow and Royal College of Surgeons of England.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Relationship between sociodemographic factors and specialty destination of UK trainee doctors:a national cohort study

We are grateful to UKMED for releasing the data for this project. We also are grateful to the following for their support of the application to UKMED for this and other research projects: Dr Sally Curtis (University of Southampton, UK), Dr Sandra Nicholson (Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, UK). We thank Daniel Smith and Andy Knapton of the General Medical Council of the UK for their support for the application and throughout the project, particularly regarding data linkage and troubleshooting.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Does performance at the intercollegiate Membership of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (MRCS) examination vary according to UK medical school and course type? A retrospective cohort study

Acknowledgments The authors would like to acknowledge Iain Targett at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, for his help with data collection and John Hines and Gregory Ayre from the Intercollegiate Committee for Basic Surgical Examinations for their support during this project. Our thanks to members of the UKMED Research Group who provided useful feedback on an earlier version of this manuscript, and whose comments helped refine the paper. The authors would also like to acknowledge Daniel Smith for his help with the UKMED database. Data source: UK Medical Education Database ('UKMED'). UKMEDP043 extract generated on 25/07/2018. We are grateful to UKMED for the use of these data. However, UKMED bears no responsibility for their analysis or interpretation the data includes information derived from that collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited ('HESA') and provided to the GMC ('HESA Data'). Source: HESA Student Records 2002/2003 to 2015/2016. Copyright Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited. The Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited makes no warranty as to the accuracy of the HESA Data, cannot accept responsibility for any inferences or conclusions derived by third parties from data or other Information supplied by it.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Does performance at medical school predict success at the Intercollegiate Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS) examination? : A retrospective cohort study

Funding Information: Royal College of Surgeons of England, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland and Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow (award/grant number is not applicable). Acknowledgements: The authors would like to acknowledge Iain Targett at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, for his help with data collection and Gregory Ayre from the Intercollegiate Committee for Basic Surgical Examinations for their support during this project. Our thanks to members of the UKMED Research Group who provided useful feedback on an earlier version of this manuscript, and whose comments helped refine the paper. The authors would also like to acknowledge Daniel Smith for his help with the UKMED database. Data Source: UK Medical Education Database (‘UKMED’). UKMEDP043 extract generated on 25 July 2018. We are grateful to UKMED for the use of these data. However, UKMED bears no responsibility for their analysis or interpretation. The data include information derived from that collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited (‘HESA’) and provided to the GMC (‘HESA Data’). Source: HESA Student Records 2007/2008 to 2015/2016. Copyright Higher Education Statistics Agency. The Higher Education Statistics Agency makes no warranty as to the accuracy of the HESA Data, cannot accept responsibility for any inferences or conclusions derived by third parties from data or other information supplied by it.Peer reviewedPublisher PD