Best practices in teaching echocardiography to cardiology fellows: a review of the evidence.

Background: Best practices in the teaching of performance and interpretation of echocardiography to cardiology fellows are unknown, and thus, it has traditionally been performed through an apprenticeship model. This review summarizes the existing literature describing evidence-based teaching of echocardiography.

Methods: A comprehensive search of multiple scientific and educational databases included prospective studies describing an educational intervention for teaching echocardiography to physicians.

A tiered mentorship program improves number of students with an identified mentor.

Background: Mentorship is critical to professional development and academic success. Unfortunately, only about 40% of medical students can identify a mentor. While group mentorship has been evaluated - the concept of a specialty specific, tiered group mentorship program (TGMP) has not.

Development and validation of a musculoskeletal physical examination decision-making test for medical students.

Objective: Despite a renewed emphasis among educators, musculoskeletal education is still lacking in medical school and residency training programs. We created a musculoskeletal multiple-choice physical examination decision-making test to assess competency and physical examination knowledge of our trainees.

Design: We developed a 20-question test in musculoskeletal physical examination decision-making test with content that most medical students and orthopedic residents should know.

The educational value of online mastery quizzes in a human anatomy course for first-year dental students.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of online mastery quizzes in enhancing dental students' learning and preparedness for anatomy examinations. First-year dental students taking an integrated anatomy course at The Ohio State University were administered online mastery quizzes, made available for five days before each examination. The mastery quizzes were comprised of ten multiple-choice questions representative of the upcoming examination in content and difficulty.

The cognitive behavior survey: testing for factorial validity and time invariance across two years of medical school.

Background: The Cognitive Behavior Survey (CBS) assesses learner behavior in healthcare-related fields.

Purpose: The study aims were to evaluate the factorial validity of the CBS, which purports to measure three dimensions of learner behavior--conceptualization, reflection, and memorization--and propose and test an alternative model including its time invariance.

Methods: The CBS was administered to 3 cohorts of medical students upon matriculation and at the end of their 1st and 2nd year.

Managing antidepressants in primary care: physicians' treatment modifications.

To examine antidepressant management practices in primary care, patients (N = 148) given an antidepressant for at least one month completed the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and a demographic survey. Participants' mean age was 50.7 yr.

Impact of clinical pathway on quality of care in sickle cell patients.

Clinical pathways are disease specific and are designed to standardize care. They are intended to serve the purpose of improving quality of care and decreasing healthcare and societal costs. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted comparing sickle cell patients admitted to Mercy Children's Hospital (MCH) from June 1999 to November 2001 before the implementation of the clinical care pathway (n=66), to a similar group of patients admitted from December 2001 to July 2004 after pathway (n=121) implementation.

Coherence between physician diagnosis and patient self reports of anxiety and depression in primary care.

Mood and anxiety disorders complicate the care of patients with physical illness and pose challenges for primary care physicians. This study explored the coherence between a screening tool (PRIME-MD), a standardized questionnaire (Eysenck Personality Inventory), and physician diagnoses of anxiety and depression. Of 165 patients, 29% had diagnoses of depression, 21% had anxiety, and 59% had no mental health diagnosis.

Primary care evaluation of mental disorders (PRIME-MD) screening for minor depressive disorder in primary care.

Objective: Individuals visiting a primary care practice were screened to determine the prevalence of depressive disorders. The DSM-IV-TR research criteria for minor depressive disorder were used to standardize a definition for subthreshold symptoms.

Method: Outpatients waiting to see their physicians at 3 community family medicine sites were invited to complete a demographic survey and the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders Patient Questionnaire (PRIME-MD PQ).

Antidepressant medication adherence: a study of primary care patients.

Background: Nonadherence to antidepressant medication significantly contributes to the undertreatment of depression in primary care populations. The purpose of this study was to survey primary care patients' adherence to antidepressant medication to better understand factors associated with nonadherence.

Method: Participants with a history of being prescribed an antidepressant for at least 4 weeks were recruited from a primary care research network.

The patient-physician relationship and medical utilization.

Objective: The goal of this study was to (1) explore the relationship between medical utilization and characteristics of the patient-physician relationship and (2) evaluate the relationship between physician perception of patient difficulty, chronic medical problems, and patient somatizing tendencies.

Method: Patients in an academic family practice center were asked to complete a demographic data sheet, the PRIME-MD Patient Questionnaire, and the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory regarding their relationship with their physicians. Their physicians completed the Difficult Doctor-Patient Relationship Questionnaire.

Patient-Physician Relationship and Service Utilization: Preliminary Findings.

BACKGROUND: Difficult physician-patient encounters pose a challenge in all aspects of health care. Characteristics of both physicians and patients affect the office encounter and utilization of services. The objectives of this study were to explore the impact of patients' characteristics and the patient-physician relationship on service utilization.

Educating grade school children using a structured bicycle safety program.

Background: Prevention is understudied in trauma care. Furthermore, the effectiveness of prevention outreach programs is not well documented. We attempted to verify that elementary school educational programs effectively create retained knowledge.