Faculty Time Research Articles

Developing and Evaluating a Remote Quality Assurance System for Point-of-Care Ultrasound for an Internal Medicine Residency Global Health Track.

Background: A quality assurance system is vital when using point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) to ensure safe and effective ultrasound use. There are many barriers to implementing a quality assurance system including need for costly software, faculty time, and extra work to log images. Methods: With minimal funding or protected faculty time, we successfully developed an effective remote quality assurance system between residents rotating internationally and faculty in the US. Results: 270 total exams were logged using this system (41 per resident over a 7 week period). Over the course of the implementation period, a significant increase was seen in average image quality (p = 0.030) and percent agreement with reviewer (p = 0.021). No significant increase was seen for percent images with quality rating 5/5 (p = 0.068) or for studies per resident per week (p = 0.30). Discussion/Conclusions: A quality assurance system for remote review and feedback of POCUS exams was successfully developed with limited available funding, using consumer-level software and an educational collaboration. Residents used the system regularly and demonstrated improvement in reviewer-rated image acquisition and interpretation skills. A similar system can be applied for physicians in any geographic area looking to learn POCUS, in partnership with local or international POCUS mentors. We detail a step-by-step approach, challenges encountered, and lessons learned, to help guide others seeking to implement similar programs.

The Impact of the ACGME’s June 2019 Changes in Residency Requirements

In the late spring of 2019, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) made a major change in the Common Program Requirements, eliminating core faculty time for teaching, administration, and assessment. To mitigate the impact of this, the Family Medicine Residency Committee

Resident Considerations for Virtual Interviews in Radiation Oncology: Perspectives From the Sunshine State

Residency candidate selection in radiation oncology has traditionally consisted of formal in-person interviews, which occur in groups, each over 1 to 2 days. This format was largely adopted due to the efficiency it provided programs in interviewing the most applicants in a given day and reducing faculty time away from clinical responsibilities. However, because of the ongoing threat of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus–2, or coronavirus disease 2019, and the associated social distancing measures, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, and the National Resident Matching Program have recommended virtual interviews for the 2020 to 2021 residency application cycle.

Methods and timing of curricular integration in U.S. dental education in preparation for the Integrated National Board Dental Examination.

To characterize methods, timing, faculty training, and barriers pertaining to curricular integration in preparation for the Integrated National Board Dental Examination (INBDE) at U.S. dental schools METHODS: Academic deans at 67 U.S. dental schools were emailed an online survey consisting of questions on the time frame and methods of curricular integration, faculty training, and barriers to curricular integration RESULTS: Approximately 86% of schools have implemented (∼39%) or will implement (∼61%) changes in curriculum in preparation for the INBDE. Curricular integration was completed in 3-4 years in most schools, with those schools with larger class sizes taking longer. While 56% of respondents reported avoiding a complete curricular overhaul, 79% reported course sequencing changes, adding, subtracting, or combining courses, and making some changes in existing courses. Curriculum committees had the most input in curricular changes, while individual instructors had the least influence. Sixty seven percent of respondents reported faculty being trained to teach in an integrated curriculum. Problem/case-based learning and clinical case presentations are being used more for incorporation of biomedical sciences in clinical curriculum; use of clinical examples was the most used mechanism to integrate clinical information in biomedical sciences curriculum. Eighty two percent of respondents indicated that lack of faculty time to prepare courses as the primary barrier for implementing an integrated curriculum. Our results show that most U.S. dental schools are implementing integrated teaching models to prepare their students for the INBDE. However, lack of faculty time and training need to be addressed for more successful curricular integration.

Family Medicine Faculty Time Allocation and Burnout: A Residency Research Network of Texas Study

Burnout among graduate medical education (GME) faculty is a well-documented phenomenon, but few studies have explored the relationship between faculty time allocation and burnout. Our objectives were to (1) characterize time allocation of academic family physicians, (2) measure the difference between actual versus preferred time spent on various tasks, and (3) examine this difference in relation to burnout. From January to March 2017, family medicine GME faculty across Texas completed anonymous online surveys for burnout (Maslach Burnout Inventory) and occupational stress (Primary Care Provider Stress Checklist). They also reported the percentage of time they actually versus prefer to allocate across 5 categories of tasks: direct patient care, nondirect clinical duties, teaching, administration, and research. Difference scores between actual and preferred time allocation were calculated and correlated with burnout and stress scores. Of the faculty physicians surveyed, 53% provided complete responses (103 of 195). On average they engaged in their preferred amount of time on direct patient care (30% of their time) and administrative duties (15%). Meanwhile, faculty preferred to increase time spent teaching (37% to 41%, P = .002) and conducting research (4% to 7%, P ≤ .001), while reducing time spent on nondirect clinical duties (14% to 7%, P < .001). Those with higher misalignment in their weekly schedules reported higher levels of professional burnout and occupational stress. Many family medicine GME faculty spent 20% or more of their time in a manner incongruent with their preferences, which may place them at higher risk for burnout and occupational stress.

Reimagining Residency Selection: Part 1-A Practical Guide to Recruitment in the Post-COVID-19 Era.

Reimagining Residency Selection: Part 1-A Practical Guide to Recruitment in the Post-COVID-19 Era.

Start-Up Sprint: Providing a Small Group Learning Experience in a Large Group Setting

Entrepreneurial education should reflect the real-world entrepreneurial process by providing for experiential learning. The challenge is reconciling this with the resource constraints that lead to large class settings, even in specialized postgraduate programs. This article offers practical suggestions for creating a highly interactive event as part of a largely lecture-based module. Students participate in a full-day Start-Up Sprint that uses real-world entrepreneurship tools and mimics the intense experience of a start-up event. This experiential exercise is designed to provide students in a large class with the experience and benefits of small group teaching, through a hands-on problem-based learning exercise that is supported by mentoring and live feedback. It provides entrepreneurship teachers of large classes with a way to mitigate the constraints of large classes, faculty time, and physical infrastructure and offer students a meaningful learning experience.

Multi-Institutional Collaborative Resident Education in the Era of COVID-19.

The 2019-2020 coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on all aspects of health care. Decrease in clinical and operative volume and limitations for conferences has drastically decreased educational opportunities for resident trainees. We describe the formation and initial success of the Collaborative Online Video Didactics lecture series, a multi-institutional online video didactics collaboration. Zoom data extraction and postlecture evaluation surveys were used to collect data on the impact of the pandemic on local educational activities as well as feedback about the lecture series. Lectures are being given by faculty from 35 institutions. The twice daily, hour-long webinar averages more than 470 live viewers per session with an average of 33.5 questions per session and has over 7,000 YouTube views of the recordings after the first 2 weeks. Viewers reported significant decreases in outpatient (75.2%), inpatient (64.9%) and operating room (77.7%) volumes at local programs, and only half (52.7%) of the survey responders indicated an increase in didactics locally. The lectures have been well-received, with over 90% of respondents giving the lecturers and series above average or excellent ratings. A significant majority of responders indicated that the lecture series has allowed for ongoing education opportunities during the pandemic (95.0%), helped to access faculty experts from other institutions (92.3%) and provided a sense of community connectedness during this period of social isolation (81.7%). We strongly encourage other institutions and trainees to participate in the didactic series and hope that this series can continue to evolve and be of benefit beyond the pandemic.

Development and implementation of clinical presentation curriculum at PAHS School of Medicine

Patan Academy of Health Sciences School of Medicine (PAHS SOM) has implemented innovative curriculum in line with its mission of producing technically competent and socially responsible doctors. One important strategy is the Clinical Presentation (CP) curriculum.&#x0D; During clinical years undergraduate medical students are taught through CP comprising of 112 common CPs. Each presentation have a schema which is a diagnostic reasoning map. Using the schema, graduates are able to scientifically approach clinical problems, categorize them into diagnostic categories with the help of their basic science knowledge, clinical findings and investigation results to gradually proceed from general and broader categories to more specific categories and finally coming down to the closest possible diagnosis or diagnoses. The diseases or conditions covered by each CPs are outlined while some overlapping and repetitions are expected. The teachings are done as small group sessions with 8-12 students and therefore demands more faculty time.&#x0D; With committed faculties and supportive leadership, successful implementation of the curriculum has been possible at PAHS SOM and the first four batches of students trained in this curriculum have already graduated and serving the society

Developing a Center for Education Research and Scholarship in a Department of Pediatrics.

This article was migrated. The article was marked as recommended. Background The skills needed to engage in scholarship in medical education are not part of the training that all physicians acquire. To build skills and promote scholarship, we developed a Center for Education Research and Scholarship (CERS) in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Colorado. In this paper, we offer recommendations for others who seek to establish departmental-level efforts to support education. Approach and Lessons Learned CERS provides an "education home" for those interested in education scholarship, supplementing campus-wide efforts such as an Academy of Medical Educators. Mentorship from two experienced leaders in medical education provided a foundation for other faculty in the department and helped to build scholarship efforts more broadly. Through a weekly meeting and an annual departmental retreat, CERS provides opportunities for community among educators, faculty development in the skills needed to engage in education research, and a forum for generating ideas and planning projects. Essential resources for success include at least one leader with expertise in educational research, an administrative and/or research assistant, and some funding for faculty time and initiation of projects. Mentors with experience in education research and scholarship are also needed, although a group of mentors quickly grows as more individuals engage. Results Benefits to the department include peer-reviewed presentations and publications in medical education, with regional, national, and international recognition. Faculty members can focus on medical education as a key component of their careers, and the quality of education programs is enhanced. Conclusions While it takes time to fully develop a departmental center for education scholarship, it is possible to start small and grow. One or two leaders in education with vision can begin the effort and engage others, and the faculty will begin to experience the satisfaction of collaborative projects in education, successful innovation, and dissemination of scholarship.

Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.

Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California.

Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine at Seton Hall University.

Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine at Seton Hall University.

Faculty perspectives of an entrustable professional activity (EPA) framework in predoctoral dental education.

The entrustable professional activity (EPA) framework is an assessment approach used to define the educational outcomes of a program by outlining discrete work tasks learners are expected to perform independently upon graduation. This study outlines the development and evaluation of an EPA framework for predoctoral dental education at the University of North Carolina Adams School of Dentistry. The draft EPA framework was created in collaboration with a group of faculty members and included 15 statements that were mapped to relevant Commission on Dental Accreditation standards. The draft EPA framework was distributed to faculty via an electronic survey, requesting participants to evaluate whether the EPAs were well-defined; observable; measurable; expected of a general dentist; transferable to other practice settings; and required application of relevant knowledge, skills, and attitudes. In addition, participants were asked to identify the percentage of graduates who could perform these tasks independently and whether learners must be able to perform the list of EPAs upon graduation. Sixty-eight faculty members completed the survey (72% response rate); participants represented all divisions across the school and had extensive dental practice experiences. Overall, participants agreed the EPAs met the defined criteria and were considered important for graduates to be able to demonstrate. Feedback from faculty voiced support for the EPA framework and identified concerns regarding the implementation due to potential faculty calibration and time constraints. Evidence from this study supports additional research to explore how the EPA framework can be further developed in predoctoral and postgraduate dental education programs.

University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine

University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine

Converting to Connect: A Rapid RE-AIM Evaluation of the Digital Conversion of a Clerkship Curriculum in the Age of COVID-19.

With the advent of the 2019 coronavirus pandemic, a decision was made to remove medical students from clinical rotations for their own safety. This forced students on a core emergency medicine (EM) rotation at McMaster University to immediately cease all in-person activities. An urgent need for a virtual curriculum emerged. A virtual curriculum consisting of asynchronous case-based learning on Slack, ask-me-anything webinars, and online e-modules was created to fill the need. We describe a program evaluation using the RE-AIM framework and a social networking analysis of participants. Medical students (n=23) and 11 facilitators (five residents, six faculty members) participated in this pilot study. Faculty members sent a mean (±SD) of 115 (±117) messages (n=6), and mean (±SD) message counts for students and residents were 49.96 (±25; n=23) and 39 (±38; n=5), respectively. A total of 62,237 words were written by the participants, with a mean of 1,831 per person. Each message consisted of a mean (±SD) of 25 words (±29). Students rapidly acquitted themselves to digital technology. Using the RE-AIM framework we highlight the feasibility of a virtual curriculum, discuss demands on faculty time, and reflect on strategies to engage learners. The use of asynchronous digital curricula creates opportunities for faculty-resident interaction and engagement. We report the successful deployment of a viable model for undergraduate EM training for senior medical students in the COVID-19 era of physical distancing.

Characteristics of Professional Physical Therapist Faculty and Doctor of Physical Therapy Programs, 2008-2017: Influences on Graduation Rates and First-Time National Physical Therapy Examination Pass Rates.

Graduation rates and first-time National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) pass rates among Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs have ranged from 30% to 100% and 0% to 100% between 2008 and 2017, respectively. Prior studies on predictors of graduation rates and NPTE pass rates from DPT programs have used cross-sectional data and have not studied faculty data. This study sought to understand how trends in DPT faculty and program characteristics correlated with graduation rates and first-time NPTE pass rates. This study was a retrospective panel analysis of yearly data from 231 programs between 2008 and 2017. Random effects models estimated the correlations between faculty and program characteristics regarding graduation rates and first-time NPTE pass rates. Graduation rates peaked when programs devoted 25% of faculty time, on average, to scholarship. The number of peer-reviewed publications was positively correlated with graduation rates; however, the trend was logarithmic, indicating a diminishing rise in graduation rates as the number of publications exceeded 1 per faculty full-time equivalent. Tenure-track status, faculty of color, and part-time faculty were all negatively correlated with first-time NPTE pass rates. However, these 3 trends are likely not meaningful, because the predicted rates of decline in pass rates were minimal. Faculty engagement in scholarly activities can positively influence graduation rates, but only up to a certain level of faculty time devoted to scholarship. This is the first study to provide data on the influence of faculty on DPT student outcomes and will help education programs develop strategies to improve those outcomes.

A National Survey on Didactic Curricula in Psychology Internship Training Programs.

Didactic curricula in psychology doctoral internship training programs in health service psychology are important components of the training experience. However, the nature of didactic curricula, including how they are developed and implemented, is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to describe characteristics of didactic programs, better understand their development, and identify barriers to implementation. This study surveyed psychology doctoral internship program directors about didactic training in their programs. A total of 122 internship directors consented to participate. On average, internship didactics were held for 11 hr per month, during regular work-day hours, and on a weekly basis. Internal faculty members were the most common didactic speakers. Didactic curricula were typically developed to meet profession-wide competencies as established by the accrediting body, the American Psychological Association. Identified barriers to didactic program development and implementation included lack of protected release time for faculty and trainees, presenter- and facility-related challenges, and difficulty addressing learner needs. Ideas for future research in this area are suggested.

Impact of the Fogarty Training Program on Trainee and Institutional Research Capacity Building at a Government Medical College in India.

Background:Strengthening health research is essential to inform public health policies. However, few research training programs have systematically measured their impact on capacity building and most evaluations have been limited to reporting of individual trainee metrics. Hence, we conducted an evaluation of the impact of a five-year training program focused on building both trainee and institutional research capacity at a public medical college in India.Methods:Quantitative and qualitative methods were used to assess the individual and institutional research capacity building of a five-year HIV-TB research training program at Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Government Medical College in Pune, India, supported by the US National Institutes of Health, Fogarty International Center. In addition to documentation of the number of trainee research projects initiated, the number of research papers produced by the Fogarty Scholars (FSs) available on PubMed was calculated. The institutional impact of this program was assessed by documentation of research training activities conducted by the FSs, as well as by surveys and in-depth interviews conducted at the beginning and end of the program.Results:Twenty-one mid-level BJGMC faculty were provided training in HIV-TB research competencies. Between 1 April 2014 and 1 April 2019, 13 of these FSs designed and implemented new IRB-approved research studies and contributed to 49 PubMed listed research papers, including 11 first-authored manuscripts. FSs also conducted 36 journal club discussions, mentored 58 student research projects and conducted 5 institutional research method workshops. Pre- and-post-program surveys and in-depth interviews documented a perceived increase in institutional research capacity, particularly in TB research (epidemiology, clinical research, laboratory research). The impact of the Fogarty Training Program on institutional scientific output was perceived to be marginally improved.Conclusion:The Fogarty Training Program had a significant impact on building individual research capacity. To sustain this impact beyond the five years of Fogarty support, additional governmental and institutional resources, the establishment of dedicated space for faculty research and protected faculty time for research are needed. These findings can inform the design and implementation of future health research capacity building initiatives.

Is it face time or structure and accountability that matter? Moving from a flipped to a flipped/hybrid classroom

PurposeThis research examines whether a shift to a hybrid classroom, which replaces some face-to-face classroom time with online instruction, adversely affects student learning if the structure and incentives that are characteristic of a flipped classroom are already in place.Design/methodology/approachThis study features a quantitative analysis of individual student data collected over multiple sections of a single course with the same instructor. In all seven sections, over two semesters, principles of microeconomics used a flipped classroom format that features preclass video lectures, daily quizzes and highly interactive class time. In three of the seven sections, the time spent in class was reduced by one-third. For this experiment, student scores on the cumulative final exam evaluate student learning. Students took a survey at the end of the semester to provide feedback on time use during the course and to make observations about the class format.FindingsResults from this study suggest that despite accountability for the work done outside of class, students score 4.4% points lower on the final exam in the class format that features reduced face-to-face time. However, student comments also suggest that this is a worthwhile tradeoff as they balance work, internships and other nonacademic demands on their time. Student evaluations of the course and instructor are statistically unchanged.Practical implicationsEfficiency in educational delivery is an ongoing concern for students and faculty. This research demonstrates that a classroom that is both flipped and hybrid makes better use of student and faculty time, provides a richer learning experience and only modestly reduces student learning. It is notable that students report a preference for the hybrid classroom model, despite modestly lower levels of learning.Originality/valueWhile research has been done on flipped and hybrid classrooms separately, this is the first paper to isolate the effect of seat time within the flipped classroom context. This research addresses the flipped classroom design's ability to mitigate the documented reduction in student learning that often results from reduced class time or an increase in online learning.

Design of a large-scale escape room for first-year pharmacy student orientation

Background and purposeIn this article, we developed and implemented an escape room activity for first-year pharmacy student orientation. The purpose of the activity was to engage students in socialization with their classmates, to familiarize students with the key personnel of the program, to acquaint students with co-curricular programming in the academic calendar, and to peruse key policies in the student handbook. Educational activity and settingAn escape room was developed for first professional year student orientationin a large classroom setting. The escape room featured several gameplay elements, including a personnel bingo game, a computerized student calendar scavenger hunt, and group assessments designed to acquaint students with policies within the student handbook. One hundred nineteen students participated simultaneously in the orientation escape room activity in break-out groups to accomplish the objectives of the escape room as measured by embedded assessments. FindingsAll students successfully escaped the encounter. Students demonstrated proficiency in orientation learning objectives on group assessments. Students were queried about their attitudes towards the instructional design via a post-survey. The proof-of-concept for this work was evaluated via a log of estimated faculty time and monetary costs for implementation. SummaryA student orientation escape room was successfully designed and implemented. Students were assessed to evaluate the retention of knowledge obtained during orientation. Despite not having previously met their classmates, survey responses indicated that studentswere positively inclined toward the educational activity.This is the first report of a co-curricular escape room developed for pharmacy student orientation.