How to Teach Laboratory Stewardship in the Undergraduate Medical Curriculum?

Objectives: Promotion of high-quality care at a lower cost requires educational initiatives across the continuum of medical education. A needs assessment was performed to inform the design of an educational tool with the goal of teaching laboratory stewardship to medical students.

Methods: The needs assessment consisted of semistructured interviews with core clerkship directors and residency program directors at our institution, a national survey to the Undergraduate Medical Educators Section (UMEDS) of the Association of Pathology Chairs, and a review of existing online resources that teach high-value care.

Displacement as a predictor of functional impairment in tsunami-exposed children.

Thirty months after the Indian Ocean tsunami of 26 December 2004, thousands of families in Aceh Province, Indonesia, remained in temporary barracks while sanitation conditions and non-governmental organisation support deteriorated. This study sought to determine the factors associated with functional impairment in a sample of 138 displaced and non-displaced Acehnese children. Using multivariate linear regression models, it was found that displacement distance was a consistent predictor of impairment using the Brief Impairment Scale.

How can we better manage difficult patient encounters?

These communication strategies--including 2 mnemonics and an at-a-glance guide--can help you help patients with unexplained complaints.

The living environment and children's fears following the Indonesian tsunami.

The tsunami that struck South-east Asia on 26 December 2004 left more than 500,000 people in Aceh, Indonesia, homeless and displaced to temporary barracks and other communities. This study examines the associations between prolonged habitation in barracks and the nature of fears reported by school-age children and adolescents. In mid-2007, 30 months after the tsunami, the authors interviewed 155 child and parent dyads.