Final Professional Examination Research Articles

A CORRELATIONAL STUDY TO ASSESS THE EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AMONG B.SC (NURSING) FINAL YEAR STUDENTS

Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the ability to manage both your own emotions and understand the emotions of people around you. The study is titled A correlational study to assess the emotional intelligence and academic performance among B.sc(N) final year students in selected nursing colleges at Madurai.. The objectives were 1)To find out the level of emotional intelligence among the Bsc(N) final year students 2.To assess the level of academic performance among the Bsc(N) final year students 3.To determine the correlation between the emotional intelligence and academic performance among the Bsc(N) final year students 4.To associate the socio demographic variables with the level of emotional intelligence among the Bsc(N) final year students 5.To associate the socio demographic variables with the academic performance among the Bsc(N) final year students. Methodology: A Quantitative approach and descriptive correlational design were used. 62 nursing students were selected by purposive sampling technique and the data were collected using an Emotional intelligence questionnaire. Results: The levels of emotional intelligence for all domains such as Emotional awareness of average EI was 33(53.22%), good EI was 28 (45.16%) and excellent EI was 1 (1.61%). Regarding emotional management, average EI was 23(37.09%), good EI was 29(46.77%) and excellent EI was 10 (16.12%). Social emotional awareness of average EI was 11 (17.74%), good EI was 36 (58.06%) and excellent EI was 15 (24.19%). Relationship management of average EI was 18 (29.03 %), good EI was 33 (53.22%) and excellent EI was 11 (17.74%). Total score of emotional intelligence, in that average EI was 16 (25.80%), good EI was 43(69.35%) and excellent EI was 3 (4.83%). The non-significant p-value infers that there was no involvement among level of emotional intelligence and selected demographic variables except type of personality (x = 8.28, p - value 0.015). There was no involvement among level of emotional intelligence and selected demographic variables except education of father (x= 18.89, p - value 0.002, support system (x = 12.62, p - value 0.001). and type of personality (x = 7.094, p - value 0.007), Conclusions: Nursing students who were more emotionally intelligent performed better in both the continuous assessments and the final professional examination. Therefore, it is possible that emotional skill development may enhance nursing students academic performance.

Lived experiences of undergraduate medical students after failure in final professional examination: A phenomenology.

The objective of the study is to focus on the actual phenomenon of medical students' exposure to failure. The research aims to highlight the lived experiences of undergraduate medical students after failure in final professional examination, from the student's point of view. Study was conducted in Bahria Medical and dental college Karachi, Pakistan. Interpretative phenomenological approach was used to explore the lived experiences of students who failed in the final professional MBBS examination. Interpretivist and pragmatic research paradigms were used for philosophical explanation of the phenomenon. Semi-structured interviews were conducted for data collection. These interviews were repeated until data saturation was reached. Interviews of participants were initially audio-recorded and then transcribed. Non-verbal communication was transcribed using observation method and following continuum of lexicalisation ranging from symbolic gestures to phrases or words omitted or adapted to enhance thick description and interpretation of latent content analysis. Verbal data was analysed by content analysis, non-verbal and verbal data were integrated, and phenomenological interpretive method was used in this study. Constant reflection on data or parts of data contributed to the understanding of the phenomenon. Data was organised in codes and themes using atlas ti-9. Results showed 16 codes under three themes, i.e. personal, social, and academic factors. Interpretive phenomenological approach applied in this study helped to uncover the complexity of medical students' failure.

A Paradigmatic Shift For Final Undergraduate Medical Students’ Examination: The COVID-19 Pandemic Approach

COVID-19 has made medical education delivery changed around the world. High stakes examinations have to take place despite the ongoing pandemic. Careful planning and considerations are mandatory in order to cater for the physical and social distancing new norms. The safety of everyone involved in the examinations (students, academics, patients and support staff) is put at the utmost priority to prevent further disease transmission. Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM) has made a drastic change in the conduct of its final professional examination for the undergraduate medical students. The traditional one long case and three short cases clinical examinations were converted to objective structured clinical examination (OSCE), comprising sixteen manned stations lasting 10 minutes each. The COVID-19 pandemic has become the stimulus for a paradigmatic shift in the final undergraduate medical students’ examination at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, USIM. This paper describes how the paradigmatic shift resulted in a successful conversion of assessment method from the traditional one long case and three short cases clinical examinations to sixteen manned objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) stations. The feedback from the examiners and students were highlighted. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought a new insight to the faculty members on alternative teaching and learning methodologies as well as how assessments can be conducted in the faculty. When left with not many choices, faculty members who were previously not convinced towards OSCE for summative assessment are now seeing OSCE as the way forward.

Surgical anatomy and biomechanics of the foot

The surgical anatomy of the foot is complex. Understanding the approaches used to address pathology of the foot and ankle requires in-depth appreciation of the anatomy of the region. Each structure has a function and enables the foot to perform its requirements. Biomechanics in the foot can be understood by grasping key principles. Anatomy and biomechanics of the foot is a potential questioning point for candidates sitting final professional examinations in trauma and orthopaedic surgery. The aim of this article is to provide an appreciation of the surgical anatomy of the foot and the biomechanics at play in the area. Gait and the gait cycle will also be reviewed.

Academic Performance Improves with Emotional Intelligence Awareness and Physical Exercise among Medical Students

Background and objective: The importance of exercise and knowledge of emotional intelligence (EI) is gaining pace in academia, which is a positive development. Only a few single-blind research studies on the benefits of exercise and Emotional intelligence have indicated their effects on educational attainment among primary school children, but there are very few reports from young adult students. This longitudinal study aims to develop an intervention protocol to investigate the differential association between induced moderate physical exercise combined with emotional intelligence awareness on academic performance among 18-24-year-old private medical university students. Methods: Students are voluntarily enrolled in two groups: TEST (n = 180) and CONTROL (n = 180) based on inclusion criteria along with applicable consent’s and ethical clearance. The groups' baseline data mapping was completed in three phases. For the TEST group, baseline data was obtained in three stages during Phase-1; -, which is the pre-intervention phase: Anthropometric data, haemoglobin concentration, and cardiorespiratory measurements were all measured in Stage 1. (Lab-based data). Stage 2: two questionnaires were used, one to measure EI awareness and the other to assess learning styles (VARK). Stage 3 entailed the simultaneous recording of pre-intervention academic grades, of a said end block examination for both TEST and CONTROL groups. Phase 2: This is the intervention phase, which included only two components for the TEST group: the first was a moderate exercise regime (BRISK WALKING) of 2-3 sessions per week for about 30 minutes per session, and the second was addressing EI awareness. Which refers to knowing the current status of EI level, and fostering EI knowledge through various teaching-learning methods. Following the end of Phase -1 baseline data mapping, the two intervention components for the TEST group run concurrently for about 6months/24weeks, for the TEST group. Phase-3: is the post-intervention phase which included repeating of Phase-1; Stages 1, 2, and 3 for the TEST group, as well as a concurrent record and analysis of post-intervention academic grades, of the final professional examination for both TEST and CONTROL groups was done after Phase-2. The outcomes of Phase-1 and Phase-3 differential association compared. Results: The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) Version 21.0 software was used to analyse all data from phases 1 and 3. A statistically significant correlation was found between the TEST group (p = 0.0001) and the CONTROL group (p = 0.406) when the pre-intervention period of multifactorial components subjected to intervention was compared to the post-intervention period. Conclusion: Intervention protocol with combined effect of emotional intelligence awareness and induced moderate physical exercise (BRISK WALKING) has shown significant improvement in academic grades.

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Final Year Medical Students: Single Center Study

Introduction: The COVID-19 health emergency led to adoption of unprecedented measures that have never been seen in recent times. The study examines the effect of COVID-19 on final year medical students’ final professional examination preparedness, transition to house job and earlier assistantship.Methodology: This descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted in September – October 2020 after institutional review board approval at University College of Medicine and Dentistry (UCMD) in Lahore, Pakistan. A total of 112 final year medical students responded to this survey whereas 13 did not. Data was analyzed using SPSS 25. Chi square test was applied to evaluate the impact of COVID 19 on variables of interest (p-value< 0.05 considered significant). Results: Postponement of clinical rotations, written exams, OSPEs and clinical ward tests was reported by 62%, 78%, 71% and 48% students respectively whilst 29%, 13%, 18% and 21% students respectively stated it to be formatted. A statistically significant impact (p<0.05) was observed for final professional examinations preparedness and confidence to assist earlier.Conclusion: The study demonstrated the significant impact of COVID-19 on final year medical students’ examination preparedness and confidence to assist earlier in hospital. Improvised teaching methodology is urgently needed to fill in the lapses in their education.Keywords: COVID-19, Medical Education, Final year MBBS professional examination, OSPE, Earlier Assistantship, House Job.

Face-to-face versus online clinically integrated EBM teaching in an undergraduate medical school: a pilot study

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to test the feasibility and effectiveness of two models (face-to-face vs online teaching) of clinically integrating evidence-based medicine (EBM) teaching in an undergraduate medical...

Association of Class Attendance and Test with Grades Attained in BDS Final Professional

OBJECTIVES:
 The purpose of this study was to verify the association of class attendance percentage, and regular test marks of each taught subject in BDS final year with marks obtained in final examination.
 METHODOLOGY:
 Class attendance and test performance records of all participants were obtained from the college authority, and the final professional examination marks sheet issued by UHS was obtained from the college office. Potential confounders like age, gender and parents’ occupation were also recorded for each student. Pearson’s correlation coefficient test was applied to verify the association of class attendance and class tests marks percentage for different subjects taught with final marks. Multivariate analysis was undertaken by adjusting for confounders in the model.
 RESULTS: 
 This study found significant correlation between each taught subject class test marks with final marks obtained in each respective subject of the final year. Class attendance of each taught subject had weak, insignificant association with final marks except in one subject i.e., Operative Dentistry.
 CONCLUSION:
 Class test marks are a stronger predictor of final examination marks than class attendance percentage.

Assessment Tools Preferred by the Undergraduate Clinical Medical Students: A Study in National Defense University of Malaysia


 Background: Assessment in medical education is necessary to determine the students’ competency as well as other attributes. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the methods of assessment at the end of rotational posting examination and final professional examination at the end of the course, preferred by the undergraduate clinical medical students. Methods: This study was conducted on 89 medical students belonging to 4th and 5th year of the Faculty of Medicine, National Defense University of Malaysia (NDUM).Results: In this study 46 students were males (51.7%) and 43 (48.3%) females; the mean age was 23.5 years. Among the multiple-choice questions (MCQ), a combination that contained multiple true-false and single best answer, was preferred by 55.1% of the students. Among the essay type of written assessments “problem management patient (PMP)” questions were preferred most (46.1%) followed by modified essay questions (MEQ), short essay questions (SEQ), and key feature questions (KFQ). Among the assessments by long case, conventional long case, which had been practiced during the course, was preferred by 67.4% of the students at the end of the medical program rather than the modified or observed long case examinations. While assessment by short case, running commentary on what was being examined, was preferred by 47.2% of students, followed by no commentary (38.2%) and not sure by the rest. 56.2% of students would prefer procedure OSCEs on mannequins and the rest won’t. Picture quizzes were highly preferred (89.9%).Conclusion: At the end of the medical program the clinical medical students prefer those methods which have already been practiced by them during the academic course. For the best achievement, every tool of assessments used in the medical curriculum should be made clear to the students and the students should practice those before they proceed for final evaluation.

Conducting virtual geriatric medicine final professional examination during COVID-19 pandemic

Medical education is witnessing severe disruption worldwide due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. But at the same time, it is important to provide continuity of teaching and timely certification assessment. Overcoming the obstacles to conduct the professional examination due to SARS-CoV-2 spread, we conducted the MD Geriatric medicine final professional examination in a hybrid virtual format. In addition to creating case repository for single system cases, we included geriatric cases with multiple combination of geriatric syndromes. The examinees were assessed by the external examiners virtually through a video conferencing platform. The end results were well appreciated by all key stake holders. The concerns, logistics and experience of conducting the MD Geriatric medicine examination in a virtual format are summarized here.

Doctors’ view about status of Teaching & Learning of Psychiatry at Undergraduate Medical Education in Bangladesh

This descriptive type of cross-sectional study was carried out at different Upazilla levels hospitals of Dhaka, Chattogram, Khulna, Sylhet, Rajshahi, Barisal & Rangpur divisions. It was conducted to find out the views of the doctors serving at primary health care level about the status of teaching & learning of Psychiatry at undergraduate medical education level in Bangladesh. The contents, teaching-learning hours, teaching-learning methods & assessment needed for Psychiatry of undergraduate medical curriculum 2002 & 2012 of Bangladesh were also reviewed & compared by the researcher. The study period was July 2019 to June 2020. A self-administered semi-structured questionnaire with five-point Likert scale was used. Convenience sampling technique was adopted & total 307 doctors participated in this study with their valuable opinions. After reviewing and comparing of undergraduate curriculum 2002 & 2012, it was found that content coverage & 20 hours lecture in psychiatry was same in both curricula. But block posting was reduced from 5 days to 3 days & ward placements was reduced from 4 weeks to 3 weeks in the curriculum of 2012 from curriculum of 2002. In curriculum 2002, there were 17.5 marks in written and 01 OSCE station in practical for Psychiatry and one examiner from either Psychiatry or Dermatology in paper II of Medicine in final professional MBBS examination. But there is no such provision for psychiatry in curriculum 2012. Among 307 doctors, 287 (86.9%) agreed that behavioral science should be taught by Psychiatrist instead of Community Medicine Specialist. Only 36 (11.8%) respondents agreed that their learning & training in psychiatry were sufficient during MBBS. Although, 227 (73.9%) doctors agreed that in their practice, a major portion of the patients were suffering from psychiatric problem, only 84 (27.4%) of them were confident enough to manage common Psychiatric cases. Among respondents, 238 (77.6%) agreed that placement of MBBS students in psychiatry should be from 3rd year and 260 (84.7%) agreed that Psychiatry should be given more weightage in MBBS curriculum. Around 180 (58.4%) doctors agreed that Psychiatry should be a separate subject as per standard set by WFME. Regarding examinership, 69% (212) respondents agreed that there should be one examiner from psychiatry in MBBS final Professional examination and 86.9% (267) of the respondents agreed that the Psychiatric part of MBBS curriculum should be updated immediately. The study recommended to update the psychiatric portion of MBBS Curriculum considering psychiatry as a separate subject as per the directive of WFME & like many countries of the world.
 Bangladesh Journal of Medical Education Vol.12(2) July 2021: 18-22

Internship orientation: An essential facilitatory bridging step for medical students.

ABSTRACTBackground:Internship is a facilitatory period that hones skills and helps in the evolution of a qualified medical student to a competent doctor. The feeling of a final year student joining as a fresh intern after successfully completing the final professional examination will be directionless without a bridging initiative through a buffer program. Fresh interns need to be oriented to the fundamentals of working effectively with a patient as a whole and not as a separate discipline. This study was done to evaluate the effectiveness of the internship orientation program and to assess the feedback of participants about this program.Methodology:This was a study conducted on 235 freshly joined medical interns. The process included evaluation of a well-structured seven-day orientation program by prevalidated structured Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) and feedback.Results:All interns performed satisfactorily in the post-test with a mean score of 74.13 ± 7.18. Post-test scores were highest for procedure skills and communication skills, including medical ethics. Overall, 232 (99%) of interns responded that the program was useful and it successfully enhanced their clinical skills; 221 (94%) of interns expressed that the content of the program was excellent to good; and 228 (97%) of interns felt that the method used for training was appropriate. Interns also documented that there were a few new skills that were acquired by attending this program.Conclusion:There is an unmet need for an internship orientation program across all medical colleges to lay a strong foundation for naive interns. Based on the results, we recommend an internship orientation program for a smooth and swift transition from that of a medical student to professional life. It will orient the interns and lay the foundation for the next level of assignment in building their professional career.

CORRELATION OF MEDICAL PROFESSIONALISM WITH ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN FINAL YEAR MEDICAL STUDENTS

Objective: To assess the correlation of medical professionalism score of final year medical students with theiracademic results of the final professional examination.
 Study Design: Correlational study.
 Place and Duration of Study: Army Medical College, Rawalpindi, from Mar to Nov 2019.
 Methodology: Final year medical students were enrolled by non-probability consecutive sampling. Their medical professionalism score was calculated using the Penn State College of Medicine-Professionalism Questionnaire (PSCOM-PQ). All the aspects of accountability, altruism, excellence, duty, honour/integrity and respect were noted using the questionnaire. Thirty points from the questionnaire were used, calculating the maximum value of 150. After the final professional examination, their academic results were procured. The strength of the relationship between medical professionalism score and academic results of final year professional examination was assessed using the Pearson correlation coefficient.
 Results: A total of 75 final year medical students were studied. The age ranged from 22-27 years (23.96 ± 1.16years). The male to female ratio was 2.12:1. The medical professionalism score ranged from 71-150 points (127.28 ± 15.43). The academic results percentages of final year professional examination (MBBS) were not found to be significantly correlated with their professionalism score (r=-0.10, p=0.394).
 Conclusion: The medical professionalism score of the final year medical students has no statistically significantcorrelation with their academic performance.

Recommendations for High-Stakes Examinations for Public Malaysian Medical Faculties during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the Deans’ Council of Public Malaysian Medical Faculties to tackle the issue of examinations in the face of movement control orders (MCO). A task force decided that final professional examination is necessary and three recommendations have been proposed. Online examination is among the best option with strict adherence to the Malaysian Medical Council guidelines. The majority of the universities used a Moodle-based Learning Management System; the examination will therefore mainly cover cognitive outcomes focusing on final professional exit examinations. It felt that cheating, although a real issue, is manageable and came up with several recommendations for the implementation based on likely outcomes of the MCO.

Developing professional competence in accounting graduates: An action research study

In 2014, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) introduced the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) as its final professional examination. The APC is an eight-hour case study assessing both the technical knowledge and pervasive skills that together represent the professional competence required of accountants entering the profession. In order to write the APC, candidates must first complete a preparatory programme designed to develop professional competence.This paper adds to the accounting education literature by identifying themes in programme design that informed the effective development of professional competence in the preparatory programme context. A four-year action research study was conducted. The initial programme design incorporated learning tools identified in the literature as effective in developing professional competence. Feedback from participating candidates was then elicited to assess the perceived contribution of each of those learning tools. This feedback was incorporated into the revised design of the next year’s programme, which was again assessed through candidate feedback. This cycle was repeated three times.The findings of this study are presented as themes emerging from the action research cycles. The study found that assessment continued to drive learning, while ‘value-adding’ material made little positive contribution. Skills development was found to be more effective when it was explicit. Individual feedback, groupwork and mentorship contributed positively to the development of professional competence, while the contribution of lectures was less clear. The study also found that large class sizes presented practical challenges to the implementation of effective learning tools.

A study of factors influencing academic performance of undergraduate medical students

Introduction: An important indicator of quality of medical education is students' academic performance and the study of factors which influence the academic performance of medical students is important as it can provide information to improve educational programs. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving medical students who passed their final professional examinations and were about to start their internship training. They were asked to complete an anonymously administered feedback form which contained questions regarding the academic performance of students in all the professional examinations of MBBS along with background characteristics of students. Data entry and statistical analysis was carried out using statistical software SPSS version 12. The primary outcome was the proportion of students in different levels of academic achievement. The secondary outcome was the factors associated with different levels of academic achievement. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the distribution of all variables. For finding out the association, an analysis using Chi-square test was done for qualitative data. Results: The mean age of participants was 22.7 ± 0.67 years (range 21–25). About 43.6% of the students had scored Conclusion: Many factors were found to have a significant association with academic performance of students such as residence, having a doctor parent, spending time on personal hobbies and social networking sites, time spent on study, and duration of sleep a day before examination.

Neuromuscular disorders: a guide for the orthopaedic surgeon

Patients with neuromuscular conditions are frequently seen in final professional clinical examinations as they have good clinical signs, which often point towards the underlying diagnosis. This paper outlines some of the most common neuromuscular disorders that you are likely to come across in orthopaedic practise.

Editorial

This issue is the fourth devoted to the principles underpinning the practice of trauma and orthopaedic surgery in the 4-year cycle of topics covered by this journal. In this cycle the Editorial Board intended to cover the major topics that should be known by trainees preparing for final professional examinations. In addition, through the site-specific issues appearing between principles issues, the cycle should also update practising surgeons for a process of revalidation. Of course, the scope of potential material is very wide and judgements have to be made about which material should be covered in the 24 issues. The Board is guided by what is in the news, what are hot topics at national and international meetings and also what is being asked in professional examinations; that is, what does the profession itself judge as important for its trainees to have comprehended and have available to use in their assessment of future clients?

Performance of medical students in final professional examination: Can in-course continuous assessments predict students at risk?

Assessment drives students' learning. It measures the level of students' understanding. We aimed to determine whether performance in continuous assessment can predict failure in the final professional examination results. We retrieved the in-course continuous assessment (ICA) and final professional examination results of 3 cohorts of medical students (n = 245) from the examination unit of the International Medical University, Seremban, Malaysia. The ICA was 3 sets of composite marks derived from course works, which includes summative theory paper with short answer questions and 1 of the best answers. The clinical examination includes end-of-posting practical examination. These examinations are conducted every 6 months in semesters 6, 7 and 8; they are graded as pass/fail for each student. The final professional examination including modified essay questions (MEQs), 1 8-question objective structured practical examination (OSPE) and a 16-station objective structured clinical examination (OSCE), were graded as pass/fail. Failure in the continuous assessment that can predict failure in each component of the final professional examination was tested using chi-square test and presented as odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Failure in ICA in semesters 6-8 strongly predicts failure in MEQs, OSPE and OSCE of the final professional examination with OR of 3.8-14.3 (all analyses p< 0.001) and OR of 2.4-6.9 (p<0.05). However, the correlation was stronger with MEQs and OSPE compared to OSCE. ICA with theory and clinical examination had a direct relationship with students' performance in the final examination and is a useful assessment tool.

Does neuro-anatomy award/ prize impact on student performance in the first professional examination in anatomy

Concern has been expressed about the motivational impact of neuro-anatomy award/prize in determining the overall student performance in the final professional anatomy examinations by comparing it with the result outcome of a high stake examination like neuro-anatomy incourse examination using the concept of convergent validity. A total of 57 third year medical students with the records of their grades/scores (Mean ± SD) in the various assessments criteria, were analyzed. In this study, the neuro-incourse examination was consistently a high predictor (r = 0.80; P Key