Abstract
BackgroundThe importance of medical professionalism and its assessment has been well documented in the literature. However, there is currently no culturally-adapted tool to assess medical professionalism in Singapore. This study sets out to find consensus on relevance of the items from the Professionalism Mini Evaluation Exercise (P-MEX) for assessing medical professionalism in Singapore.MethodsA two-round Delphi survey was completed by an expert panel consisting of program directors, associate designated institutional officials, and designated institutional official (n = 15) from residency programs in Singapore. Round 1 comprised of 23 items from the P-MEX rated on a 5-point scale (1 = Definitely include, 2 = Possibly include, 3 = Neutral, 4 = Possibly exclude, 5 = Definitely exclude). In round 2, the experts received feedback from the previous round, and were asked to re-rate the items which did not achieve consensus in the previous round. The threshold for consensus in the study was defined as 70% or greater agreement among experts.ResultsCompleted questionnaires for both rounds were received from all 15 experts. In round 1, 18 items (78%) achieved consensus to be included. In round 2, 1 (4%) item achieved consensus to be included. However, none of the remaining items achieved consensus to be removed, and they exhibited stability in responses. A list of 19 items covering four domains of medical professionalism (Doctor-patient relationship skills, Reflective skills, Time management and Inter-professional relationship skills) was obtained during the two-rounds of Delphi survey.ConclusionsNineteen items in the P-MEX had garnered consensus and is suitable for assessing medical professionalism in Singapore. The findings of this study can provide guidance for faculty and institutions who want to assess medical professionalism of their medical trainees.
Highlights
Medical professionalism has been shown to affect doctors’ relationships with their patients, quality of care, and health and illness outcomes [1]
We had previously performed a systematic review of the quality and utility of observerbased assessment tools that could be used in residency programs and had identified the Professionalism MiniEvaluation Exercise (P-MEX) as one of the assessment tools that could be useful in the assessment of medical professionalism in our residency programs [13]
A total of 15 experts participated in this study (67% male, median age 45 years (37 to 66 years)), consisting of 11 program directors, three associate designated institutional officials (ADIO) and one designated institutional official (DIO)
Summary
Medical professionalism has been shown to affect doctors’ relationships with their patients, quality of care, and health and illness outcomes [1]. Medical professionalism can be nurtured [10], but in order for this to take place, it has to be adequately assessed [11]. One of the dominant frameworks of medical professionalism is that professionalism consists of a set of behaviours and competencies that can be mastered by the physician; and these behaviours and competencies can be assessed [12]. The importance of medical professionalism and its assessment has been well documented in the literature. There is currently no culturally-adapted tool to assess medical professionalism in Singapore. This study sets out to find consensus on relevance of the items from the Professionalism Mini Evaluation Exercise (PMEX) for assessing medical professionalism in Singapore
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