Objective: Over half of junior learners (JL) feel pressure to work independently and report rarely calling their supervisor. It is unclear how JL decide whether or not to call their supervisor. The study aims to identify factors that JL consider when responding to clinical scenarios and deciding whether to call senior residents (SR) and compare them to factors identified by SR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Breastfeeding is recognized as the gold standard of infant feeding and nutrition. The World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) of infants for the first 6 months of life. A variety of factors may impact breastfeeding practices in-hospital which may continue after hospital discharge, such as the use of breastmilk substitutes (BMS).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Canadian stillbirth data are limited, and a significant proportion of pregnancies resulting in stillbirth have no attributable cause. The objective of this study was to characterize stillbirth case investigations and management at a tertiary care hospital in Ontario, Canada.
Methods: This was a retrospective chart review study of all cases of singleton stillbirth at The Ottawa Hospital between 1 January 2012 and 31 December 2017.
Purpose In their final year, medical students explore prospective residency programs by completing visiting electives and attending interviews during the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS) process. Due to COVID-19, visiting electives and in-person interviews were suspended, leaving residency programs searching for alternate ways to share CaRMS information with applicants. This study evaluates the utility of Twitter to share CaRMS-related information prior to and during the pandemic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Competence by design (CBD) residency programs increasingly depend on tools that provide reliable assessments, require minimal rater training, and measure progression through the CBD milestones. To assess intraoperative skills, global rating scales and entrustability ratings are commonly used but may require extensive training. The Competency Continuum (CC) is a CBD framework that may be used as an assessment tool to assess laparoscopic skills.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The abrupt cessation of in-person education due to the COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult for preclerkship students to explore a career in surgery. To supplement the lack of exposure, the Surgical Exploration and Discovery (SEAD) program was transitioned to an entirely virtual format. This study aims to describe the virtual SEAD program and evaluate its effectiveness as a career decision-making (CDM) intervention.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: There is limited information on the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in obstetric settings in Canada, beyond the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (February to June 2020). We sought to describe the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnant people admitted to triage units at a tertiary care hospital in Ottawa, Canada.
Methods: We conducted a descriptive study of pregnant people admitted to obstetric triage assessment units at The Ottawa Hospital between Oct.
Background: Residency selection integrates objective and subjective data sources. Interviews help assess characteristics like insight and communication but have the potential for bias. Structured multiple mini-interviews may mitigate some elements of bias; however, a halo effect is described in assessments of medical trainees, and degree of familiarity with applicants may remain a source of bias in interviews.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: It is estimated that over 930 million people live in fragile and conflict-affected situations (FCAS) worldwide. These regions, characterized by violence, civil unrest, and war, are often governed by corrupt administrations who are unwilling to provide their citizens with basic human rights. Individuals living in FCAS face health inequities; however, women are disproportionally affected and face additional barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive services, including antenatal care (ANC).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: There is a paucity of literature on the impact of bariatric surgery on artificial reproductive technology (ART) outcomes. This topic should be examined, given that most bariatric surgery candidates are of reproductive age and those with obesity are significantly more likely to experience poor fertility outcomes. This systematic review aimed to determine if bariatric surgery impacts ART outcomes and if effects vary between females and males.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Breastmilk hand expression (BMHE) is recommended to promote lactation, relieve breast engorgement, and collect milk for future infant feedings. Resources to teach this skill are limited and infrequently developed in partnership with the obstetrical population. In collaboration with maternity care experts and individuals with recent breastfeeding experience, we designed a one-page toolkit that describes the process of BMHE and includes step-by-step instructions and images to illustrate the technique.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Individuals with obesity are at higher risk of experiencing complications during their pregnancy and may also experience infertility, requiring assisted reproductive technologies (ART) to conceive. The current body of literature demonstrates that bariatric surgery decreases an individual's risk of developing a variety of obesity-related obstetrical conditions during and after pregnancy. However, the effects of bariatric surgery on ART outcomes are not well understood.
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