Better data for teachers, better data for learners, better patient care: college-wide assessment at Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine

When our school organized the curriculum around a core set of medical student competencies in 2004, it was clear that more numerous and more varied student assessments were needed. To oversee a systematic approach to the assessment of medical student competencies, the Office of College-wide Assessment was established, led by the Associate Dean of College-wide Assessment. The mission of the Office is to ‘facilitate the development of a seamless assessment system that drives a nimble, competency-based curriculum across the spectrum of our educational enterprise.’ The Associate Dean coordinates educational initiatives, developing partnerships to solve common problems, and enhancing synergy within the College. The Office also works to establish data collection and feedback loops to guide rational intervention and continuous curricular improvement. Aside from feedback, implementing a systems approach to assessment provides a means for identifying performance gaps, promotes continuity from undergraduate medical education to practice, and offers a rationale for some assessments to be located outside of courses and clerkships. Assessment system design, data analysis, and feedback require leadership, a cooperative faculty team with medical education expertise, and institutional support. The guiding principle is ‘Better Data for Teachers, Better Data for Learners, Better Patient Care.’ Better data empowers faculty to become change agents, learners to create evidence-based improvement plans and increases accountability to our most important stakeholders, our patients

The TopClosure® 3S System, for skin stretching and a secure wound closure

The principle of stretching wound margins for primary wound closure is commonly practiced and used for various skin defects, leading at times to excessive tension and complications during wound closure. Different surgical techniques, skin stretching devices and tissue expanders have been utilized to address this issue. Previously designed skin stretching devices resulted in considerable morbidity. They were invasive by nature and associated with relatively high localized tissue pressure, frequently leading to necrosis, damage and tearing of skin at the wound margins. To assess the clinical effectiveness and performance and, to determine the safety of TopClosure® for gradual, controlled, temporary, noninvasive and invasive applications for skin stretching and secure wound closing, the TopClosure® device was applied to 20 patients for preoperative skin lesion removal and to secure closure of a variety of wound sizes. TopClosure® was reinforced with adhesives, staples and/or surgical sutures, depending on the circumstances of the wound and the surgeon’s judgment. TopClosure® was used prior to, during and/or after surgery to reduce tension across wound edges. No significant complications or adverse events were associated with its use. TopClosure® was effectively used for preoperative skin expansion in preparation for dermal resection (e.g., congenital nevi). It aided closure of large wounds involving significant loss of skin and soft tissue by mobilizing skin and subcutaneous tissue, thus avoiding the need for skin grafts or flaps. Following surgery, it was used to secure closure of wounds under tension, thus improving wound aesthetics. A sample case study will be presented. We designed TopClosure®, an innovative device, to modify the currently practiced concept of wound closure by applying minimal stress to the skin, away from damaged wound edges, with flexible force vectors and versatile methods of attachment to the skin, in a noninvasive or invasive manner

A systematic review of the effects of residency training on patient outcomes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Residents are vital to the clinical workforce of today and tomorrow. Although in training to become specialists, they also provide much of the daily patient care. Residency training aims to prepare residents to provide a high quality of care. It is essential to assess the patient outcome aspects of residency training, to evaluate the effect or impact of global investments made in training programs. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review to evaluate the effects of relevant aspects of residency training on patient outcomes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The literature was searched from December 2004 to February 2011 using MEDLINE, Cochrane, Embase and the Education Resources Information Center databases with terms related to residency training and (post) graduate medical education and patient outcomes, including mortality, morbidity, complications, length of stay and patient satisfaction. Included studies evaluated the impact of residency training on patient outcomes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Ninety-seven articles were included from 182 full-text articles of the initial 2,001 hits. All studies were of average or good quality and the majority had an observational study design.Ninety-six studies provided insight into the effect of 'the level of experience of residents' on patient outcomes during residency training. Within these studies, the start of the academic year was not without risk (five out of 19 studies), but individual progression of residents (seven studies) as well as progression through residency training (nine out of 10 studies) had a positive effect on patient outcomes. Compared with faculty, residents' care resulted mostly in similar patient outcomes when dedicated supervision and additional operation time were arranged for (34 out of 43 studies). After new, modified or improved training programs, patient outcomes remained unchanged or improved (16 out of 17 studies). Only one study focused on physicians' prior training site when assessing the quality of patient care. In this study, training programs were ranked by complication rates of their graduates, thus linking patient outcomes back to where physicians were trained.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The majority of studies included in this systematic review drew attention to the fact that patient care appears safe and of equal quality when delivered by residents. A minority of results pointed to some negative patient outcomes from the involvement of residents. Adequate supervision, room for extra operation time, and evaluation of and attention to the individual competence of residents throughout residency training could positively serve patient outcomes. Limited evidence is available on the effect of residency training on later practice. Both qualitative and quantitative research designs are needed to clarify which aspects of residency training best prepare doctors to deliver high quality care.</p

Perseverance, faith and stoicism: a qualitative study of medical student perspectives on managing fatigue

CONTEXT: Fatigue risk management (FRM) strategies offer a potential solution to the widespread problem of fatigued trainees in the clinical workplace. These strategies assume a shared perception that fatigue is hazardous. Despite the growing body of evidence suggesting that fatigue leads to burnout and medical errors, previous research suggests that residents perceive fatigue as a personal, surmountable burden rather than an occupational hazard. Before we can implement FRM, we need a better understanding of when and how such problematic notions of fatigue are adopted by medical trainees. Thus, we sought to explore how third-year medical students understand and manage the workplace fatigue they experience during their first year of clinical rotations. METHODS: A total of 22 third-year medical students participated in semi-structured interviews exploring their perspectives of workplace fatigue. Data collection and analysis occurred iteratively in keeping with constructivist grounded theory methodology and were informed by theoretical sampling to sufficiency. RESULTS: Our participants described unprecedented levels of sleep deprivation combined with uncertainty and confusion that led to significant fatigue during training. Drawing on their workplace experience, trainees believed that fatigue posed three distinct threats, which evoked different coping strategies: (i) threat to personal health, managed by perseverance; (ii) threat to patients, managed by faith in the system, and (iii) threat to professional reputation, managed by stoicism. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings highlight how senior medical students grapple with fatigue, as they understand it, within a training context in which they are expected to deny the impact of their fatigue on patients and themselves. Despite empirical evidence to the contrary, the prevailing assumption amongst our participants is that an ability to withstand sleep deprivation without impairment will develop naturally over time. Efforts to implement FRM strategies will need to address this assumption if these strategies are to be successfully taken up and effective