Pre-clerkship Medical Students Research Articles

Signs, Sources, Coping Strategies, and Suggested Interventions for Burnout Among Preclerkship Students at a U.S. Medical School: A Qualitative Focus Group Study.

Research suggests that burnout can begin early in medical school, yet burnout among preclerkship students remains underexplored. This study aimed to characterize burnout signs, sources, coping strategies, and potential interventions among preclerkship students at one U.S. medical school. The authors conducted a qualitative study of preclerkship students at Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine (MCASOM) during June 2019. Participants completed 2 Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) items (measuring frequency of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization) and 2 free-text questions on burnout before participating in 1 of 3 semistructured focus groups. Focus group questions were derived from a literature review on medical student burnout with input from the MCASOM Student Life and Wellness Committee. Group discussions were recorded, transcribed, coded inductively, and analyzed iteratively (along with free-text comments) using a general inductive approach from a constructivist perspective. Eighteen of 111 eligible students (16%) participated, with 5/18 (28%) reporting weekly emotional exhaustion and/or depersonalization on MBI items. Analysis of focus group transcripts showed that most students had experienced burnout symptoms during their first or second year, corresponding with school-related stressors and manifesting in cognitive-emotional, physical, and verbal-behavioral ways. Students identified systemic, institutional, and individual burnout drivers and discussed how these drivers interacted (e.g., high standards of excellence at the system level interacted with anxiety and maladaptive thinking at the individual level, creating pressure to always do more). Students used various coping strategies (e.g., self-care, peer support, reframing, and compartmentalization) but emphasized limitations of these strategies and recommended interventions directed toward systemic and institutional burnout drivers. This study offers insights into burnout signs and sources among preclerkship medical students that can inform future large-scale studies. Results suggest that burnout emerges from dynamic interactions among systemic, institutional, and individual factors and may benefit from multipronged interventions.

How early clinical experiences in rural communities influence student learning about rural generalism considered through the lens of educational theory

Introduction: Rural communities have poorer health compared to urban populations due partly to having lesser healthcare access. Rural placements during medical education can equip students with the knowledge and skills to work in rural communities, and, it is hoped, increase the supply of rural physicians. It is unclear how students gain knowledge of rural generalism during placements, and how this can be understood in terms of place-based and/or sociocultural educational theories. To gain insight into these questions we considered the experiences of pre-clerkship medical students who completed two mandatory four-week rural placements during their second year of medical school. Methods: Data was collected using semi-structured interviews or focus groups, followed by thematic analysis of the interview transcripts. Results: Rural placements allowed students to learn about rural generalism such as breadth of practice, and boundary issues. This occurred mainly by students interacting with rural physician faculty, with the effectiveness of precepting being key to students acquiring knowledge and skills and reporting a positive regard for the placement experience. Discussion: Our data show the central role of generalist physician preceptors in how and what students learn while participating in rural placements. Sociocultural learning theory best explains student learning, while place-based education theory helps inform the curriculum. Effective training and preparation of preceptors is likely key to positive student placement experiences.

Implementation and evaluation of an interprofessional prescription writing workshop with a simulated electronic prescribing activity for preclerkship medical students

BackgroundPrescription writing skills are essential for physician practice. This study describes the development and implementation of a curricular intervention focused on improving the knowledge and confidence of preclerkship medical students’ prescription writing practices utilizing an interprofessional education model, with a focus on electronic prescribing.MethodsMedicine and Pharmacy Faculty from a large, urban university collaborated to develop the content of the workshop and a simulation platform was used for the e-prescribing activity. Second-year medical students attended a mandatory in-person workshop facilitated by fourth-year pharmacy students. A pre and post knowledge test and confidence survey were used to assess students’ knowledge, confidence, and satisfaction. Outcomes from the knowledge test were evaluated with paired-samples proportions tests, and confidence survey data was evaluated with paired t-tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests in a pre-post study design.ResultsStudents demonstrated a significant increase in prescription writing knowledge and confidence after completing the workshop. On the pre-test, 7% of students (21/284) completed the electronic prescribing assessment correctly and 51% of students (149/295) completed it correctly on the post-test. All items on the confidence survey showed a significant increase in pre- versus post-survey comparisons (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThis interprofessional prescription writing workshop facilitated by pharmacy students shows promise for improving the knowledge and confidence of prescription writing and electronic prescribing practices in preclerkship medical students.

A Patient-Centered Documentation Skills Curriculum for Preclerkship Medical Students in an Open Notes Era.

New legislation allows patients (with permitted exceptions) to read their clinical notes, leading to both benefits and ethical dilemmas. Medical students need a robust curriculum to learn documentation skills within this challenging context. We aimed to teach note-writing skills through a patient-centered lens with special consideration for the impact on patients and providers. We developed this session for first-year medical students within their foundational clinical skills course to place bias-free language at the forefront of how they learn to construct a medical note. One hundred seventy-three first-year medical and dental students participated in this curriculum. They completed an asynchronous presession module first, followed by a 2-hour synchronous workshop including a didactic, student-led discussion and sample patient note exercise. Students were subsequently responsible throughout the year for constructing patient-centered notes, graded by faculty with a newly developed rubric and checklist of best practices. On postworkshop surveys, learners reported increased preparedness in their ability to document in a patient-centered manner (presession M = 2.2, midyear M = 3.9, p < .001), as rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = not prepared at all, 5 = very prepared), and also found this topic valuable to learn early in their training. This curriculum utilizes a multipart approach to prepare learners to employ clinical notes to communicate with patients and providers, with special attention to how patients and their care partners receive a note. Future directions include expanding the curriculum to higher levels of learning and validating the developed materials.

Determining Root Causes of Poor Academic Performance to Provide Wraparound Support for Preclerkship Medical Students.

Determining Root Causes of Poor Academic Performance to Provide Wraparound Support for Preclerkship Medical Students.

One-week radiology boot camp for pre-clerkship medical students: A novel format improving image interpretation and confidence

Rationale and objectivesTo measure change in radiology knowledge, confidence in radiology skills, and perceptions pertaining to radiology following a one-week boot camp elective for undergraduate medical students. Materials and methodsA five-day comprehensive radiology boot camp was developed including sessions on image interpretation, procedural skills, and appropriate image ordering. A multiple-choice quiz was administered before and after the elective, utilizing radiology questions from the validated AMSER STARS database. Additionally, a pre- and post-elective survey was administered assessing radiology career interest, confidence in radiology-based skills, and the potential ability of radiology-based skills to increase confidence in specialties other than radiology. Responses from the assessments were analysed using paired t-tests. Results15 students enrolled in the course and 14 completed all assessments. The average score on the quiz increased from 50.1% to 66.0% (p<0.001). On the post-elective survey, the average student confidence score increased by more than one point on a six-point Likert scale in each of radiographic interpretation (p=0.004), ultrasound interpretation (p=0.0002), CT/MRI interpretation (p=0.02), general radiology knowledge including procedural skills (p=0.0001), and appropriate image ordering (p=0.004). Average student satisfaction with the elective was 8.1 out of 10. ConclusionA one-week radiology boot camp for pre-clerkship medical students improved radiology knowledge and confidence in radiology skills, showing potential for this format to meet the demand for increased radiology content in undergraduate training. Students indicated that confidence in radiology knowledge would increase confidence on non-radiology clerkship rotations, highlighting the importance of how a one-week radiology bootcamp can impact both future radiology and non-radiology clerkship experiences.

An Introduction to Clinical Informatics for Early Medical Learners Using Colorectal Cancer Screening.

Clinical informatics is an important component of the AMA-endorsed third pillar of undergraduate medical education, health systems science. Discrete educational opportunities for clinical informatics and health systems science among early learners are lacking in medical school curricula. We developed and evaluated a multistep, 2.5-hour activity during the gastroenterology module to introduce these topics to preclerkship medical students. A didactic session introducing clinical informatics and clinical decision support and reviewing health promotion and screening concepts was followed by small-group activities. Students worked through a series of exercises culminating in the generation of a clinical decision support tool based on the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) colorectal cancer screening recommendations. Between 2022 and 2023, 326 first-year medical students participated in this workshop. Feedback was predictably mixed. In 2022, 88% of postclass survey respondents confirmed having a better clinical informatics understanding after the workshop. In 2023, students reported a statistically significant increase in their self-reported understanding of the role of clinical informatics, clinical decision support, and USPSTF colorectal cancer recommendations. Clinical decision support is a viable pathway for introduction of clinical informatics, health systems science, and public health/prevention topics. Our educational approach offers an interactive introduction to this group of topics that can benefit future physicians. While colon cancer provides a robust option for the clinical situation, this activity could be modified to fit into many different clinical scenarios, allowing for interdisciplinary education during either undergraduate or graduate medical education.

Preclerkship Medical Students’ Use of Third-Party Learning Resources

Undergraduate medical education increasingly relies on asynchronous, virtual learning; and medical educators have observed students engaging in self-directed learning outside of their institutional curriculum using widely available third-party resources. If medical educators better understand how students are learning, they may uncover novel opportunities to improve preclerkship education. To explore how and why preclerkship medical students use third-party learning resources. This qualitative study recruited second-year medical students from 7 public and private allopathic US medical schools and conducted 7 virtual focus groups (1 per institution) from September 2022 to January 2023, exploring how and why students use third-party resources. Data were iteratively analyzed in parallel with focus groups using constructivist grounded theory methodology. Data analysis was performed from October 2022 to February 2023. Fifty-eight second-year US medical students who had used a third-party resource at least once participated; 36 (61%) identified as women; 13 (23%) identified as Asian, 6 (11%) as Black, 30 (53%) as White, 6 (11%) as multiracial, and 4 (7%) as other; 6 (10%) identified as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin, and 52 (90%) identified as non-Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin; 48 (83%) were aged 23 to 25 years. Participants described engaging in a cyclical process of deciding whether and how to use third-party resources. Four broad themes were identified: (1) hearing about resources, (2) selecting resources, (3) using resources, and (4) tensions and possible solutions. Participants largely heard about third-party resources from peers and turned to resources out of dissatisfaction with some aspect of their medical school curriculum. Students used resources in various ways that were user-dependent and context-dependent. Participants endorsed multiple benefits over their in-house curricula, particularly efficiency, clarity, and concision. Tensions included navigating resource drawbacks and the perception of an antagonistic relationship between medical schools and third-party resources. Participants suggested that medical schools examine the resources, recommend specific ones, integrate them into the curriculum, and subsidize their cost. In this qualitative study of preclerkship medical student use of third-party resources, participants perceived that the resources had numerous benefits for learning and suggested that medical schools should more formally acknowledge and integrate their use.

Pre-clerkship procedural training in venipuncture: a prospective cohort study on skills acquisition and durability

BackgroundThe effectiveness of simulation-based training for skill acquisition is widely recognized. However, the impact of simulation-based procedural training (SBPT) on pre-clerkship medical students and the retention of procedural skills learned through this modality are rarely investigated.MethodsA prospective cohort study was conducted among pre-clerkship medical students. Learners underwent SBPT in venipuncture in the skills laboratory. Assessments were conducted at two main points: 1) immediate assessment following the training and 2) delayed assessment one year after training. Learner self-assessments, independent assessor assessments for procedural competency, and communication skills assessments were conducted in both instances. The students were assessed for their competency in performing venipuncture by an independent assessor immediately following the training in the simulated setting and one-year post-training in the clinical setting, using the Integrated Procedural Protocol Instrument (IPPI). The student’s communication skills were assessed by standardized patients (SP) and actual patients in the simulated and clinical settings, respectively, using the Communication Assessment Tool (CAT).ResultsFifty-five pre-clerkship medical students were recruited for the study. A significant increase was observed in self-confidence [mean: 2.89 SD (Standard Deviation) (0.69)] and self-perceived competency [mean: 2.42 SD (0.57)] in performing venipuncture, which further improved at the delayed assessment conducted in the clinical setting (p < 0.001). Similarly, the IPPI ratings showed an improvement [immediate assessment: mean: 2.25 SD (1.62); delayed assessment: mean: 2.78 SD (0.53); p < 0.01] in venipuncture skills when assessed by an independent assessor blinded to the study design. A significant difference (p < 0.01) was also observed in doctor-patient communication when evaluated by SPs [mean: 2.49 SD (0.57)] and patients [mean: 3.76 SD (0.74)].ConclusionSimulation-based venipuncture training enabled students to perform the procedure with confidence and technical accuracy. Improved rating scores received at a one-year interval denote the impact of clinical training on skills acquisition. The durability of skills learned via SBPT needs to be further investigated.

Deliberate practice of diagnostic clinical reasoning reveals low performance and improvement of diagnostic justification in pre-clerkship students

PurposeDiagnostic errors are a large burden on patient safety and improving clinical reasoning (CR) education could contribute to reducing these errors. To this end, calls have been made to implement CR training as early as the first year of medical school. However, much is still unknown about pre-clerkship students’ reasoning processes. The current study aimed to observe how pre-clerkship students use clinical information during the diagnostic process.MethodsIn a prospective observational study, pre-clerkship medical students completed 10–11 self-directed online simulated CR diagnostic cases. CR skills assessed included: creation of the differential diagnosis (Ddx), diagnostic justification (DxJ), ordering investigations, and identifying the most probable diagnosis. Student performances were compared to expert-created scorecards and students received detailed individualized formative feedback for every case.Results121 of 133 (91%) first- and second-year medical students consented to the research project. Students scored much lower for DxJ compared to scores obtained for creation of the Ddx, ordering tests, and identifying the correct diagnosis, (30–48% lower, p < 0.001). Specifically, students underutilized physical exam data (p < 0.001) and underutilized data that decreased the probability of incorrect diagnoses (p < 0.001). We observed that DxJ scores increased 40% after 10–11 practice cases (p < 0.001).ConclusionsWe implemented deliberate practice with formative feedback for CR starting in the first year of medical school. Students underperformed in DxJ, particularly with analyzing the physical exam data and pertinent negative data. We observed significant improvement in DxJ performance with increased practice.

The Impact of Changing Step 1 to Pass/Fail Reporting on Anxiety, Learning Approaches, and Curiosity.

Given the significance of the US Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step 1 score moving from a 3-digit value to pass/fail, the authors investigated the impact of the change on students' anxiety, approach to learning, and curiosity. Two cohorts of pre-clerkship medical students at three medical schools completed a composite of four instruments: the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the revised two-factor Study Process Questionnaire, the Interest/Deprivation Type Epistemic Curiosity Scale, and the Short Grit Scale prior to taking the last 3-digit scored Step 1 in 2021 or taking the first pass/fail scored Step 1 in 2022.Responses of 3-digit and pass/fail exam takers were compared (Mann-Whitney U) and multiple regression path analysis was performed to determine the factors that significantly impacted learning strategies. There was no difference between 3-digit (n = 86) and pass/fail exam takers (n = 154) in anxiety (STA-I scores, 50 vs. 49, p = 0.85), shallow learning strategies (22 vs. 23, p = 0.84), or interest curiosity scores (median scores 15 vs. 15, p = 0.07). However, pass/fail exam takers had lower deprivation curiosity scores (median 12 vs. 11, p = 0.03) and showed a decline in deep learning strategies (30 vs. 27, p = 0.0012). Path analysis indicated the decline in deep learning strategies was due to the change in exam scoring (β = - 2.0428, p < 0.05). Counter to the stated hypothesis and intentions, the initial impact of the change to pass/fail grading for USMLE Step 1 failed to reduce learner anxiety, and reduced curiosity and deep learning strategies. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-023-01878-w.

Applying a validated scoring rubric to pre-clerkship medical students’ standardized patient notes: a pilot study

BackgroundWith the elimination in 2021 of the United States Medical Licensing Examination Step 2 Clinical Skills test, it is incumbent upon U.S. medical schools to develop local validated assessments of clinical reasoning. While much attention has been paid to summative exams for graduating students, formative exams for pre-clerkship students have not been well studied.MethodsWe applied the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine (UIC-COM) Patient Note (PN) Scoring Rubric to templated PNs written by 103 pre-clerkship students for two cases in an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) at the Yale School of Medicine. The rubric consists of four section scores (Documentation, Differential Diagnosis, Justification, and Workup, each scored 1 to 4) and a composite score (scaled 23 to 100). We calculated item discrimination for each section score and Cronbach’s alpha for each case. We surveyed students about their experience writing the templated PN.ResultsMean Documentation, Differential Diagnosis, Justification, Workup, and composite scores for case A were 2.16, 1.80, 1.65, 2.29, and 47.67, respectively. For case B, the scores were 2.13, 1.21, 1.60, 1.67, and 40.54, respectively. Item discrimination ranged from 0.41 to 0.80. Cronbach’s alpha for cases A and B was 0.48 and 0.25, respectively. A majority of the students felt that the exercise was useful and appropriate to their level of training.ConclusionsDespite performing poorly, pre-clerkship students found the note-writing task beneficial. Reliability of the scoring rubric was suboptimal, and modifications are needed to make this exercise a suitable measure of clinical reasoning.

Teaching Students How to Think: A Longitudinal Qualitative Study of Preclerkship Clinical Reasoning Instruction

ABSTRACT Introduction An objective of undergraduate medical education is to teach students how to think like physicians through a process called clinical reasoning. Currently, clerkship directors often feel that students enter their clinical years with a marginal comprehension of clinical reasoning concepts; instruction in this area could be improved. Although there have been previous educational studies assessing curricular interventions to improve the instruction of clinical reasoning, it is not yet known what happens at an individual level between an instructor and a small group of students in the teaching of clinical reasoning. This research will identify how clinical reasoning is being taught in a longitudinal clinical reasoning course. Methods The Introduction to Clinical Reasoning course is a 15-month-long case-based course held in the preclinical curriculum of the USU. Individual sessions involve small-group learning with approximately seven students per group. Throughout the academic year of 2018-2019, 10 of these sessions were videotaped and transcribed. All participants provided informed consent. A thematic analysis was performed using a constant comparative approach. Transcripts were analyzed until thematic sufficiency was reached. Results Over 300 pages of text were analyzed; new themes ceased to be identified after the eighth session. Topics included obstetrics, general pediatric issues, jaundice, and chest pain; these sessions were taught either by attendings, fellows, or fourth-year medical students with attending supervision. The thematic analysis revealed themes associated with clinical reasoning processes, themes associated with knowledge organization, and a theme associated with clinical reasoning in the military. The clinical reasoning process themes included problem list construction and refinement, differential diagnosis, naming and defending a leading diagnosis, and clinical reasoning heuristics. The knowledge organization themes included illness script development and refinement and semantic competence. The final theme was military relevant care. Conclusions In individual teaching sessions, preceptors emphasized problem lists, differential diagnoses, and leading diagnoses in a course designed to strengthen diagnostic reasoning in preclerkship medical students. The use of illness scripts was more often implicitly used rather than explicitly stated, and students used these sessions to use and apply new vocabularies related to a clinical presentation. Instruction in clinical reasoning could be improved by encouraging faculty to provide further context to their thinking, by encouraging the comparing and contrasting of illness scripts, and by using a shared vocabulary for clinical reasoning. Limitations of this study include that it was done in the context of a clinical reasoning course and that it was done at a military medical school, which may limit generalizability. Future studies could determine if faculty development could improve the frequency of references to the clinical reasoning processes that could improve student readiness for clerkship.

Assessment of Brain Computed Tomography as a Practical Way to Predict Neurological Outcomes in Post-Cardiac Arrest Survivors

Objective: To evaluate whether a visual inspection of ischemic changes in brain computed tomography (CT) images, which is very practical in clinical settings, could predict neurological outcomes in post-cardiac arrest survivors. Materials and Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed medical records and brain CT images of 62 patients who remained comatose after surviving cardiac arrest and had undergone a CT scan within 24 hours to seven days. Neurological outcomes at one month were assessed using the Cerebral Performance Category (CPC). The CPC scores of 1-2 and 3-5 referred to good and poor neurological outcomes, respectively. Findings from the inspection of the images were graded into grade 1 for absence of acute ischemic change, grade 2 for decreased attenuation of the grey matter in some brain region(s), and grade 3 for diffused loss of grey-white matter differentiation or apparent brain swelling. An experienced neurologist and a consensus group of four pre-clerkship medical students, blinded to the neurological outcomes, evaluated the grade of ischemic changes in CT images. Results: Positive correlations were observed between CPC and CT grading by both the neurologist (ρ=0.76, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.90, p&lt;0.001) and medical students (ρ=0.57, 95% CI 0.38 to 0.77, p&lt;0.001). The CT grading of 2 or more by the neurologist could predict poor neurological outcomes with specificity of 1.00, sensitivity of 0.89, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) AUC of 0.94 (95% CI 0.89 to 1.00). The evaluation by medical students showed an ROC AUC of 0.80 (95% CI 0.64 to 0.96). Conclusion: The simple visual inspection of ischemic changes in brain CT images showed a high diagnostic accuracy and could be a practical method for predicting neurological outcomes in post-cardiac arrest survivors. Keywords: Cardiac arrest; Post-cardiac arrest ischemic brain injury; Neurological outcomes; Computerized tomography

Values Clarification as a Reflective Practice for Preclerkship Medical Students.

Values clarification is a structured, reflective process individuals engage in to better understand their own beliefs and priorities. We designed a workshop on values clarification to help preclerkship medical students anticipate and manage potential conflicts between their personal values and professional expectations. We assigned participating students a values clarification exercise as prework. The 2-hour workshop included introductory remarks, a presentation by two physicians on personal ethical challenges they had faced, and faculty-facilitated small groups. In the small groups, students discussed moral discomfort in the context of various health care scenarios. Students were invited to complete an optional postworkshop survey with Likert-scale and short-answer questions. We analyzed the qualitative data and formulated 10 emerging themes. Thirty-eight of 180 participating students (21%) returned the survey. Of these, 30 (79%) agreed the workshop helped them appreciate that their values might come into conflict with professional obligations, 26 (68%) agreed they would be able to apply what they learned to future scenarios, and 30 (79%) agreed the workshop helped them understand their colleagues' values. The most prominent themes identified were that students found the physician panel especially meaningful and that the workshop helped students examine their own values and prepared them to better understand their future patients' values. Our workshop is unique in that it does not focus on a single area in health care but addresses moral discomfort broadly. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first values clarification curricular initiative developed for preclerkship medical students.

Medical student competence in ophthalmology assessed using the Objective Standardized Clinical Examination.

To assess pre-clerkship and clerkship medical student performance in an ophthalmology Objective Standardized Clinical Examination (OSCE) station. One hundred pre-clerkship medical students and 98 clerkship medical students were included in this study. The OSCE station consisted of a common ocular complaint - blurry vision with decreased visual acuity - and students were asked to take an appropriate history, provide two or three differential diagnoses to explain the symptoms, and perform a basic ophthalmic examination. Generally, clerks performed better than pre-clerks in the history taking (P < 0.01) and ophthalmic examination (P < 0.05) sections, with few specific exceptions. In the history-taking section, more pre-clerkship students asked about patient age and past medical history (P < 0.00001) and for the ophthalmic examination, more pre-clerkship students performed the anterior segment examination (P < 0.01). Interestingly, more pre-clerkship students were also able to provide two or three differential diagnoses (P < 0.05), specifically diabetic retinopathy (P < 0.00001) and hypertensive retinopathy (P < 0.00001). The performance of both groups was generally satisfactory; however, many students in both groups had scores that were unsatisfactory. Notably, pre-clerks also outperformed clerks in certain areas, which emphasizes the importance of revisiting ophthalmology content through clerkship. Awareness of such knowledge can allow medical educators to incorporate focused programs into the curriculum.

The Effectiveness of a Journal Club for Improving Evidence-Based Medicine Skills and Confidence in Pre-clerkship Medical Students.

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) refers to medical practice that uses current best evidence to inform decision-making. This requires several skills including (1) creating an answerable question, (2) searching literature, (3) critically appraising evidence, and (4) applying results. Journal clubs are known to be effective in improving searching and critical appraisal skills in graduate medical education. In pre-clerkship medical education, journal clubs are used less often, and students often do not have the opportunity to engage in all of the steps above. We developed a journal club for pre-clerkship students and measured its effectiveness using a pre-test, post-test design. Students attended 5 journal club sessions run by rotating student leaders and facilitated by faculty. Student groups developed searchable questions from clinical cases, searched the literature, located and critically appraised an article, and applied results to the case. We measured EBM skills and confidence using two validated questionnaires. Twenty-nine students (MS-1 and MS-2) completed the study. EBM confidence significantly improved at post-test with greatest improvements in the MS-1 student cohort. Confidence in developing a searchable question from a patient case significantly improved in both cohorts. There were no changes measured on the Test of EBM Knowledge and Skills. Participation in a faculty-mentored, student-led journal club improved confidence across all domains of EBM, primarily in MS-1 students. Journal clubs are positively received by pre-clerkship medical students and provide effective mechanisms to teach and promote all steps of EBM in pre-clerkship curricula. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-023-01779-y.

A Mixed-Methods Needs Assessment for a Longitudinal Surgical Preparation Course in Undergraduate Medical Education

To assess the unmet needs associated with surgical education and skill development during the pre-clerkship years of medical school. A mixed-methods design was employed that leveraged semi-structured interviews and quantitative surveys followed by qualitative analysis. A large midwestern academic medical center. Eighteen participants were enrolled representing second year medical students with an interest in surgery, surgical residents, and attending surgeons from a diverse array of surgical specialties. Unanimous support for the creation of a pre-clerkship surgical skills course emerged due to 2 main themes: (1) gaps in current surgical education offerings and (2) the value of early exposure to surgery and surgical skills followed by longitudinal practice. The components that participants deemed essential to a well-designed course were also revealed. Each stakeholder group (medical students, residents, surgeons) would benefit across all factors uncovered. There is a significant unmet need across all stakeholder groups for the creation of a longitudinal surgical skills course for pre-clerkship medical students. Future studies should seek to design a curriculum based on these study results and assess a pilot version of the curriculum to understand its feasibility under application.

"Intersections of Social Systems, Race, and Health in America: A Historical Perspective": A Novel Elective for Medical Students to Increase Antiracism Advocacy.

There are growing calls for medical education to effectively teach about and explicitly name racism as a driver of inequities in social determinants of health and inspire student action to address health inequities. Using a novel application of the generative co-design approach, in 2020 Perelman School of Medicine students and faculty implemented a student-led, interdisciplinary elective course for preclerkship medical students. The co-design process allowed for an iterative and conversation-based experience emphasizing how social systems and racist policies shape health care access and outcomes. Active student participation was integral to developing discussion questions to elicit how students' positions in power structures can uphold inequities. Community members and nonprofit leaders taught about the current realities of discrimination and how students could best advocate for patients in the future. Enrolled students (n = 17) and a control group of nonenrolled classmates (n = 37) completed the Anti-Racism Behavioral Inventory (ARBI) pre- and post-course to compare changes in antiracist behaviors. Course participants demonstrated a significant increase in ARBI scores (mean = 4.29 (7.30); t(16) = 2.42; P = .01), while students from the control group did not (mean = 1.43 (6.98); t(36) = 1.25; P = .11). The "individual advocacy" subdomain of the ARBI largely drove the change in ARBI scores, suggestive of increased antiracism behavior in the enrolled cohort. Students provided feedback offering praise for course elements and suggestions for improvement. Early findings suggest that this course, created with a co-design approach, generated new experiences for medical students, increased their understanding of systemic racism, and increased individual antiracist advocacy. Future work, with larger class sizes and longitudinal measurement of behavior change, should further investigate the transformative effects of applying co-design strategies to medical education courses about race and health.

Analysis of Pre-clerkship Medical Students' Perceptions and Performance During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Virtual instruction became the primary educational delivery method for pre-clerkship medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aims of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness of a virtual and blended pre-clerkship curriculum and to assess its impact on students. We surveyed 223 1st- and 2nd-year medical students (MS1s and MS2s) enrolled at the Paul L Foster School of Medicine. We analyzed student satisfaction with their courses, along with summative exam scores, compared to previous academic years. The survey was completed by 125 of 223 students (56%). Most students changed their study methods (78%), experienced technical issues (85%), and had difficulty communicating with faculty (62%). MS1s were significantly more likely than MS2s to report difficulty in adjusting to virtual instruction (p = 0.037) and a negative impact on their learning skills (p = 0.005) and academic performance (p = 0.003). Students reported the virtual environment negatively affected their social skills (77%), connectedness to peers (89%), and professional development (62%). MS1s were more likely than MS2s to perceive a negative effect on their sense of wellness (p = 0.002). The overall satisfaction with the courses was similar to previous academic years. Student performance in the summative examination of the first virtually delivered unit was lower (p = 0.007) than the previous year's cohorts. The difference in MS1s and MS2s perceptions of virtual and blended instruction highlights the importance of face-to-face learning during the first year. Benefits and drawbacks were identified which may help inform educators when designing future learning models. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40670-022-01723-6.