Assessing Clinical Competencies in Medical Trainees
Author Information
Author(s): Christopher S. Gray, Anthony J. Hildreth, Catherine Fisher, Andrew Brown, Anita Jones, Ruth Turner, Leslie Boobis
Primary Institution: City Hospitals Sunderland Foundation Trust
Hypothesis
Is it feasible to conduct a formal assessment of clinical competencies for postgraduate medical trainees during their induction process?
Conclusion
The study found that a formal assessment of clinical competencies was feasible and useful, identifying areas for future training while reassuring the proficiency of trainees in most core competencies.
Supporting Evidence
- 87.6% of trainees participated in the assessment during the first 14 days of appointment.
- Candidates achieved high median raw percentage scores for most stations.
- Significant differences in performance were noted between training grades for certain competencies.
Takeaway
The study checked if new doctors could do important medical tasks and found that most were good at them, but some still needed more practice.
Methodology
A questionnaire was given to FY1 doctors to assess their prior experience and confidence, followed by an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) to evaluate their clinical competencies.
Potential Biases
Potential bias in self-reported confidence and experience from newly qualified doctors wishing to demonstrate improvement.
Limitations
The study relied on self-reported data, which may be subject to recall bias, and the assessment was conducted in a short time frame with limited definition of competency.
Participant Demographics
Participants included 106 training grade doctors from various specialties, primarily FY1 and FY2 levels.
Statistical Information
P-Value
<0.0001
Confidence Interval
1.8–4.5
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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