Investigating the internal structure of multiple mini interviews-A perspective from Pakistan.

Background: Healthcare professionals require many personal attributes in addition to cognitive abilities and psychomotor skills for competent practice. Multiple Mini- Interviews are being employed globally to assess personality attributes of candidates for selection in health professions education at all level of entry; these attributes are namely, communication skills, critical thinking, honesty, responsibility, health advocacy, empathy and sanctity of life. Considering the high stakes involved for students, faculty, institutions and the society, rigorous quality assurance mechanisms similar to those used for student assessment must be employed for student selection, throughout the continuum of medical education.

Exploring Endoscopic Competence in Gastroenterology Training: A Simulation-Based Comparative Analysis of GAGES, DOPS, and ACE Assessment Tools.

Purpose: Accurate and convenient evaluation tools are essential to document endoscopic competence in Gastroenterology training programs. The Direct Observation of Procedural Skills (DOPS), Global Assessment of Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Skills (GAGES), and Assessment of Endoscopic Competency (ACE) are widely used validated competency assessment tools for gastrointestinal endoscopy. However, studies comparing these 3 tools are lacking, leading to lack of standardization in this assessment.

Student experiences of simulation-based learning and its impact on their performance in Objective Structured Clinical Examination in Pediatrics - A mixed method study.

Objective: This study aims to assess the effectiveness of integrating simulation for teaching pediatric clinical examination skills to undergraduate, MBBS Year-IV medical students at The Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.

Methods: In this mixed method study, the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) scores of the students who were taught using simulation (batch 2017-2018) were compared with the batch of the academic year 2016 -2017 (taught via traditional methods). In order to explore the experiences of the intervention group, a questionnaire with four open-ended questions was administered at the end of the clerkship.

Assessment during Covid-19: quality assurance of an online open book formative examination for undergraduate medical students.

Background: The spread of COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 compelled all the educational activities, including medical education to be shifted from face-to-face interaction to a virtual platform. This shift provided opportunities for exploring online assessment modalities. One such assessment method is an online open book exam which is a unique concept in medical education of Pakistan.

Implementing work place based assessment: The modified direct observation of procedural skills (DOPS) across medical specialties - An experience from a developing country.

Objective: To assess the skill level of residents regarding central venous catheterisation insertion, and to assess the reliability of scores in a simulated situation.

Methods: The quasi-experimental study with pre- and post-test design was conducted from February to June 2013 at the Aga Khan University, Karachi, and comprised four workshops attended by residents. The workshops were video-recorded for feedback and self-assessment.

The "new-normal" OSCE examination: Executing in the COVID-19 era.

In this unprecedented situation of COVID-19 era, the educational institutions have to attune not only the teaching strategies but also the assessment. Similarly, just as COVID precautions have become the "new normal" practice, hence implementation changes during face-to-face examinations may become standard practice in the Post- COVID era. The Objective structured clinical exams (OSCEs) which usually require a face-to-face assessment of skills, posed a special challenge to health professionals in COVID 19.

Assessment of blended learning for teaching dental anatomy to dentistry students.

Objectives: Blended learning (BL) combines conventional face to face (F2F) sessions with online educational resources. This method includes the advantages of online course delivery without the omission of conventional F2F interaction. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate students' satisfaction and educational outcomes in a BL course compared to traditionally administered dental anatomy course.

Ratings of performance in multisource feedback: comparing performance theories of residents and nurses.

Background: Multisource feedback (MSF) is increasingly being used to assess trainee performance, with different assessor groups fulfilling a crucial role in utility of assessment data. However, in health professions education, research on assessor behaviors in MSF is limited. When assessing trainee performance in work settings, assessors use multidimensional conceptualizations of what constitutes effective performance, also called personal performance theories, to distinguish between various behaviors and sub competencies.

Top-Cited Articles from Dental Education Journals, 2009 to 2018: A Bibliometric Analysis.

The number of citations an article receives is an important indicator to quantify its influence in its field. The aim of this study was to identify and analyze the characteristics of the 50 top-cited articles addressing dental education published in two journals dedicated to dental education ( and ). The Web of Science database was searched to retrieve the 50 most-cited articles from the two journals in December 2018.

Predictive validity of a Uniform Entrance Test for the health professionals.

Objective: To investigate the predictive validity of Uniform Entrance Test for academic performance in the first two years in various health science degree programs.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of admissions data and academic performance of students admitted in under-graduate programs of medicine, dentistry and pharmacy of three cohorts was taken. The independent and dependent variables were entry test scores and semester scores respectively.

Mimicking rashes: Use of moulage technique in undergraduate assessment at the aga khan university, Karachi.

Background: The use of simulated patients in student assessment is supported by the Best Evidence Medical Education and U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and it provides a safe and effective alternative to real patients in many situations.

Making lectures memorable: A cognitive perspective.

Lectures have been a cornerstone of medical education since the introduction of a discipline based curricular model more than two hundred years ago. Recently this instructional strategy has come under criticism because of its reliance on passive learning. There are still many medical schools that cover content predominantly through lectures due to its feasibility.

5-Aminosalicylic acid attenuates allergen-induced airway inflammation and oxidative stress in asthma.

Pro-inflammatory cytokines regulate the magnitude of allergic reactions during asthma. Tumor necrosis factor--alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) play a crucial role in aggravating the inflammatory conditions during allergic asthma. In addition, oxidative stress contributes to the pathogenesis of asthma by altering the physiological condition resulting in the development of status asthmaticus.

How does self-efficacy affect performance of learner?

All types of attribution based on which learners make their judgement (i.e., self efficacy), about academic success or failure or about a specific task usually affect their performance and their capabilities to deal with different realities.