Using Peer Comparisons to Evaluate Combined Residency Training in Pediatrics, Psychiatry, and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

Abstract

The American Board of Pediatrics and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology developed a five-year, postgraduate training program, the successful completion of which satisfies the training requirements for certification in pediatrics, psychiatry, and child and adolescent psychiatry. Six sites began admitting residents in July 1986, and as of July 1995, 127 trainees had been or were enrolled in what has become known as the ‘triple board’. An extensive evaluation was conducted for the first nine years of the project, and the purpose of this paper is to report on the peer performance aspect of the evaluation. For years one and two, the triple board residents were compared to pediatric residents. For years three and four, they were compared to general psychiatry residents, and in year five they were compared to child and adolescent psychiatry residents. The results indicate that the triple board residents were quite variable in their performance in pediatrics, psychiatry, and child and adolescent psychiatry. In general, they performed at or slightly below the median when judged against their peers in pediatrics. When ranked against their peers in general and child and adolescent psychiatry, they typically performed at or above the median level of their peers.