Utility of a Standardized Fourth-Year Medical Student Surgical Preparatory Curriculum: Program Director Perceptions.

Objective: Each July, surgical interns arrive to residency with variable skills, knowledge, and clinical experience. To standardize and improve intern preparation, the American College of Surgeons (ACS), Association of Program Directors in Surgery, and Association for Surgical Education developed a pilot Resident Prep Curriculum (RPC). To date, no studies have analyzed these efforts.

Monitoring the Veterinary Medical Student Experience: An Institutional Pilot Study.

Veterinary medical school challenges students academically and personally, and some students report depression and anxiety at rates higher than the general population and other medical students. This study describes changes in veterinary medical student self-esteem (SE) over four years of professional education, attending to differences between high and low SE students and the characteristics specific to low SE veterinary medical students. The study population was students enrolled at the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine from 2006 to 2012.

Refining a brief decision aid in stable CAD: cognitive interviews.

Background: We describe the results of cognitive interviews to refine the "Making Choices©" Decision Aid (DA) for shared decision-making (SDM) about stress testing in patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD).

Methods: We conducted a systematic development process to design a DA consistent with International Patient Decision Aid Standards (IPDAS) focused on Alpha testing criteria. Cognitive interviews were conducted with ten stable CAD patients using the "think aloud" interview technique to assess the clarity, usefulness, and design of each page of the DA.

Documenting clinical performance problems among medical students: feedback for learner remediation and curriculum enhancement.

Introduction: We operationalized the taxonomy developed by Hauer and colleagues describing common clinical performance problems. Faculty raters pilot tested the resulting worksheet by observing recordings of problematic simulated clinical encounters involving third-year medical students. This approach provided a framework for structured feedback to guide learner improvement and curricular enhancement.

Shared Decision Making Guidance Reminders in Practice (SDM-GRIP).

Objective: Develop a system of practice tools and procedures to prompt shared decision making in primary care. SDM-GRIP (Shared Decision Making Guidance Reminders in Practice) was developed for suspected stable coronary artery disease (CAD), prior to the percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) decision.

Methods: Program evaluation of SDM-GRIP components: Grand Rounds, provider training (communication skills and clinical evidence), decision aid (DA), patient group visit, encounter decision guide (EDG), SDM provider visit.

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.

Being uninformed on informed consent: a pilot survey of medical education faculty.

Background: This paper describes a pilot survey of faculty involved in medical education. The questionnaire focuses on their understanding of IRB policies at their institution, specifically in relation to the use of student assessment and curriculum evaluation information for scholarship.

Methods: An anonymous survey was distributed to medical educators in a variety of venues.

Lessons learned from implementing multidisciplinary health professions educational models in community settings.

This article addresses sustainability elements for multidisciplinary health professions education in communities. The results are based on a 5 year program involving multiple health professions education institutions in seven states within the USA. We offer observations and suggestions to others who plan and implement multidisciplinary programs for health professions educators.

A strategy for developing educational evaluations for learner, course, and institutional goals.

The curricula for both veterinary and human medicine are undergoing review and change as a new and highly competitive practice environment influences what abilities graduates require to be successful. Concerning many is the contention that some graduates lack skills and aptitudes necessary for economic success. If significant changes are to be considered for the curricula of either profession, it will be difficult to plan for meaningful change in the absence of high-quality information about the needs of graduates and related curriculum gaps.