Riding the rapids: COVID-19, the three rivers curriculum, and the experiences of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

When faced with the COVID-19 pandemic this past spring, the University of Pittsburgh's School of Medicine (UPSOM) took rapid steps to ensure the safety of students, staff, and the faculty as well as to maintain the educational process. Curriculum reform efforts, already underway, proved to be an advantage in the transformation. We quickly converted to a remote and then a hybrid curriculum. Research labs were reopened with appropriate safety measures. Clinical experiences for students restarted via a phased process that emphasized safety and graduation requirements. A variety of assessment mechanisms were restarted with appropriate modifications. New teaching models, such as flipped classrooms, have become the norm, and it seems hard to imagine our returning to our old pedagogy. The curriculum committee met continually to guide the process of change and reopening. The curricular adaptation process remains ongoing, and challenges remain. Nonetheless, we have learned from our experiences and hope to use this knowledge gained as we move forward.

Managing Acute Pain and Opioid Risks Following Wisdom Teeth Extraction: An Illustrative Case.

Introduction: The opioid epidemic has awakened educators to the insufficiency of training in the areas of pain management and substance use disorders within the curricula of health sciences schools. The University of Pittsburgh Center of Excellence in Pain Education created an online educational module focusing on factors contributing to the opioid epidemic and the role of robust interprofessional communication in avoiding common practitioner errors. Methods: The 1-hour module created by an interprofessional team comprised a pretest, video presentation featuring case vignettes, posttest, and learner satisfaction survey. The content of the module focused on four core concepts: (1) managing acute perioperative pain, (2) maximizing opioid safety, and (3) identifying and (4) managing suspected opioid abuse and diversion. Results: Data were obtained from 250 dental, pharmacy, and nursing students from the University of Pittsburgh who completed the module as part of their respective profession-specific curricula. Results collapsed across the three school-specific implementations indicated an average increase in knowledge test scores from pre- to posttest (Z = -8.82, p < .001). In addition, the learner satisfaction data revealed an overall positive response to the module, with students commenting that they enjoyed the module and felt it provided them with a valuable learning experience. Discussion: Learner outcomes and feedback suggest that our interprofessional team was successful in creating an effective learning module applicable to several health care professions, namely, pharmacy, dentistry, and nursing. Future studies might address the application of the knowledge gained to actual patient care.

An E-learning Module on Chronic Low Back Pain in Older Adults: Effect on Medical Resident Attitudes, Confidence, Knowledge, and Clinical Skills.

Objective: To determine 1) the feasibility of implementing an e-learning module on chronic low back pain (CLBP) in an older adult into an existing internal medicine residency curriculum and 2) the impact of this module on resident attitudes, confidence, knowledge, and clinical skills relating to CLBP. Methods: Participants were assigned to complete either the online module (N = 73) or the Yale Office-based curriculum on CLBP (N = 70). Attitudes, confidence, and knowledge were evaluated pre- and postintervention via survey. A retrospective blinded chart review of resident clinic encounters was conducted, wherein diagnosis codes and physical exam documentation were rated as basic or advanced. Results: There was no improvement in overall knowledge scores in either group (60% average on both metrics). There were tendencies for greater improvements in the intervention group compared with controls for confidence in managing fibromyalgia (2.4 to 2.9 vs 2.5 to 2.5, P = 0.06) and leg length discrepancy (1.8 to 2.5 vs 1.5 to 1.9, P = 0.05). Those exposed to the online module also showed an increase in the percentage of physical exam documentation rated as advanced following the intervention (13% to 32%, P = 0.006), whereas the control group showed no change (14% to 12%, P = 0.68). Conclusions: An online module on CLBP in the older adult was a feasible addition to an existing curriculum for internal medicine residents. The module positively and substantively impacted resident clinical behaviors, as evidenced by enhanced sophistication in physical exam documentation; it also was associated with improved confidence in certain aspects of chronic pain management.

An Entrustable Professional Activity (EPA)-Based Framework to Prepare Fourth-Year Medical Students for Internal Medicine Careers.

The purpose of the fourth year of medical school remains controversial. Competing demands during this transitional phase cause confusion for students and educators. In 2014, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) released 13 Core Entrustable Professional Activities for Entering Residency (CEPAERs). A committee comprising members of the Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine and the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine applied these principles to preparing students for internal medicine residencies. The authors propose a curricular framework based on five CEPAERs that were felt to be most relevant to residency preparation, informed by prior stakeholder surveys. The critical areas outlined include entering orders, forming and answering clinical questions, conducting patient care handovers, collaborating interprofessionally, and recognizing patients requiring urgent care and initiating that care. For each CEPAER, the authors offer suggestions about instruction and assessment of competency. The fourth year of medical school can be rewarding for students, while adequately preparing them to begin residency, by addressing important elements defined in the core entrustable activities. Thus prepared, new residents can function safely and competently in supervised postgraduate settings.

What Are We Telling Our Students? A National Survey of Clerkship Directors' Advice for Students Applying to Internal Medicine Residency.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about the advice fourth-year medical students receive from their advisors as they prepare to apply for residency training. OBJECTIVE: We collected information on recommendations given to medical students preparing to apply to internal medicine residencies regarding fourth-year schedules and application strategies. METHODS: Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine conducted its annual member survey in June 2013. We analyzed responses on student advising using descriptive and comparative statistics, and free-text responses using content analysis. RESULTS: Of 124 members, 94 (76%) responded, and 83 (88%) advised fourth-year medical students. Nearly half (45%) advised an average of more than 20 students a year. Advisors encouraged students to take a medicine subinternship (Likert scale mean 4.84 [1, strongly discourage, to 5, strongly encourage], SD = 0.61); a critical care rotation (4.38, SD = 0.79); and a medicine specialty clinical rotation (4.01, SD = 0.80). Advisors reported they thought fourth-year students should spend a mean of 6.5 months doing clinical rotations (range 1-10, SD = 1.91). They recommended highest academic quartile students apply to a median of 10 programs (range 1-30) and lowest quartile students apply to 15 programs (range 3-100). Top recommendations involved maximizing student competitiveness, valuing program fit over reputation, and recognizing key decision points in the application process. CONCLUSIONS: Undergraduate medical advisors recommended specific strategies to enhance students' competitiveness in the Match and to prepare them for residency. The results can inform program directors and encourage dialogue between undergraduate medical education and graduate medical education on how to best utilize the fourth year.

The Selling of Primary Care 2015.

The role of undergraduate medical education in creating, perpetuating, and potentially solving the physician shortage in adult primary care has been debated for years, but often the discussions revolve around overly simplistic notions of supply and demand. The supply is curtailed, it is said, because the work is hard and the pay is low relative to other career options. Missing is a recognition that medical schools make choices in developing primary care learning environments that profoundly affect student perceptions of this career. Emerging developments in healthcare, including the transformation of academic health centers into integrated health systems that enter into risk-based contracts, may provide an opportunity to re-direct discussions about primary care. More schools may begin to recognize that they can control the quality of primary care teaching environments, and that doing so will help them achieve excellence in education and compete in the new marketplace. The selling of primary care to medical schools may be the first step in primary care selling itself to medical students.

Course Offerings in the Fourth Year of Medical School: How U.S. Medical Schools Are Preparing Students for Internship.

The fourth year of medical school remains controversial, despite efforts to reform it. A committee from the Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine and the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine examined transitions from medical school to internship with the goal of better academic advising for students. In 2013 and 2014, the committee examined published literature and the Web sites of 136 Liaison Committee on Medical Education-accredited schools for information on current course offerings for the fourth year of medical school. The authors summarized temporal trends and outcomes when available.Subinternships were required by 122 (90%) of the 136 schools and allow students to experience the intern's role. Capstone courses are increasingly used to fill curricular gaps. Revisiting basic sciences in fourth-year rotations helps to reinforce concepts from earlier years. Many schools require rotations in specific settings, like emergency departments, intensive care units, or ambulatory clinics. A growing number of schools require participation in research, including during the fourth year. Students traditionally take fourth-year clinical electives to improve skills, both within their chosen specialties and in other disciplines. Some students work with underserved populations or seek experiences that will be henceforth unavailable, whereas others use electives to "audition" at desired residency sites. Fourth-year requirements vary considerably among medical schools, reflecting different missions and varied student needs. Few objective outcomes data exist to guide students' choices. Nevertheless, both medical students and educators value the fourth year of medical school and feel it can fill diverse functions in preparing for residency.

E-learning module on chronic low back pain in older adults: evidence of effect on medical student objective structured clinical examination performance.

The Institute of Medicine has highlighted the urgent need to close undergraduate and graduate educational gaps in treating pain. Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is one of the most common pain conditions, and older adults are particularly vulnerable to potential morbidities associated with misinformed treatment. An e-learning case-based interactive module was developed at the University of Pittsburgh Center of Excellence in Pain Education, one of 12 National Institutes of Health-designated centers, to teach students important principles for evaluating and managing CLBP in older adults. A team of six experts in education, information technology, pain management, and geriatrics developed the module. Teaching focused on common errors, interactivity, and expert modeling and feedback. The module mimicked a patient encounter using a standardized patient (the older adult with CLBP) and a pain expert (the patient provider). Twenty-eight medical students were not exposed to the module (Group 1) and 27 were exposed (Group 2). Their clinical skills in evaluating CLBP were assessed using an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Mean scores were 62.0 ± 8.6 for Group 1 and 79.5 ± 10.4 for Group 2 (P < .001). Using an OSCE pass-fail cutoff score of 60%, 17 of 28 Group 1 students (60.7%) and 26 of 27 Group 2 students (96.3%) passed. The CLBP OSCE was one of 10 OSCE stations in which students were tested at the end of a Combined Ambulatory Medicine and Pediatrics Clerkship. There were no between-group differences in performance on eight of the other nine OSCE stations. This module significantly improved medical student clinical skills in evaluating CLBP. Additional research is needed to ascertain the effect of e-learning modules on more-advanced learners and on improving the care of older adults with CLBP.

Hold-over admissions: are they educational for residents?

PURPOSE: Since implementation of resident duty-hour restrictions, many academic medical centers utilize night-float teams to admit patients during off hours. Patients are transferred to other resident physicians the subsequent morning as "hold-over admissions." Despite the increase of hold-over admissions, there are limited data on resident perceptions of their educational value. This study investigated resident perceptions of hold-over admissions, and whether they approach hold-over admissions differently than new admissions. METHOD: Survey of internal medicine residents at an academic medical center. RESULTS: A total of 111 residents responded with a response rate of 71 %. Residents reported spending 56.2 min (standard deviation [SD] 18.9) compared to 80.0 min (SD 25.8) admitting new patients (p < 0.01). Residents reported spending significantly (p < 0.01) less time reviewing the medical record, performing histories, examining patients, devising care plans and writing orders in hold-over admissions compared to new admissions. Residents had neutral views on the educational value of hold-over admissions. Features that significantly (p < 0.01) increased the educational value of admissions included severe illness, patient complexity, and being able to write the initial patient care orders. Residents estimated 42.5 % (SD 14) of their admissions were hold-over patients. CONCLUSIONS: Residents spend less time in all aspects of admitting hold-over patients. Despite less time spent admitting hold-over patients, residents had neutral views on the educational value of such admissions.

Identifying and overcoming the barriers to bedside rounds: a multicenter qualitative study.

PURPOSE: The use of bedside rounds in teaching hospitals has declined, despite recommendations from educational leaders to promote this effective teaching strategy. The authors sought to identify reasons for the decrease in bedside rounds, actual barriers to bedside rounds, methods to overcome trainee apprehensions, and proposed strategies to educate faculty. METHOD: A qualitative inductive thematic analysis using transcripts from audio-recorded, semistructured telephone interviews with a purposive sampling of 34 inpatient attending physicians from 10 academic U.S. institutions who met specific inclusion criteria for "bedside rounds" was performed in 2010. Main outcomes were themes pertaining to barriers, methods to overcome trainee apprehensions, and strategies to educate faculty. Quotations highlighting themes are reported. RESULTS: Half of respondents (50%) were associate or full professors, averaging 14 years in academic medicine. Primary reasons for the perceived decline in bedside rounds were physician- and systems related, although actual barriers encountered related to systems, time, and physician-specific issues. To address resident apprehensions, six themes were identified: build partnerships, create safe learning environments, overcome with experience, make bedside rounds educationally worthwhile, respect trainee time, and highlight positive impact on patient care. Potential strategies for educating faculty were identified, most commonly faculty development initiatives, divisional/departmental culture change, and one-on-one shadowing opportunities. CONCLUSIONS: Bedside teachers encountered primarily systems- and time-related barriers and overcame resident apprehensions by creating a learner-oriented environment. Strategies used by experienced bedside teachers can be used for faculty development aimed at promoting bedside rounds.

Integrating medical students' goals, self-assessment and preceptor feedback in an ambulatory clerkship.

BACKGROUND: Self-assessment and feedback are important elements for improving performance. However, coordinating their content remains elusive. PURPOSE: The purpose is to determine whether student self-assessment and preceptor feedback correlate with course outcomes and whether preceptor feedback informs student self-assessment. METHODS: Our students generate initial and midterm goals and preceptors provide midterm feedback. We coded goals and feedback as clinical subsets, knowledge, career oriented, and attitudinal. We assessed associations with exams and evaluations using correlations, chi-square, and comparisons of means. RESULTS: Students usually listed clinical goals (72%), whereas preceptors noted attitudes (50%). Students' self-assessments had little association with exams, evaluations, or preceptor feedback. Students cited by preceptors for clinical strengths scored higher on exams (77.2 vs. 72.7, p < .01). Those cited for knowledge received more honors and high pass (78 vs. 60%, p = .05) evaluations. CONCLUSIONS: Students and preceptors emphasize different aspects of performance. Student self-assessments were not associated with outcomes, but preceptor feedback was. Student self-assessment seemed resistant to feedback.

The value of bedside rounds: a multicenter qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Bedside rounds have decreased on teaching services, raising concern about trainees' clinical skills and patient-physician relationships. PURPOSE: We sought to identify recognized bedside teachers' perceived value of bedside rounds to assist in the promotion of bedside rounds on teaching services. METHODS: Authors used a grounded theory, qualitative study design of telephone semistructured interviews with bedside teachers (n = 34) from 10 U.S. institutions (2010-2011). Main outcomes were characteristics of participants, themes pertaining to the perceived value of bedside rounds, and quotations highlighting each respective theme. RESULTS: The mean years in academic medicine was 13.7, and 51% were associate or full professors. Six main themes emerged: (a) skill development for learners (e.g., physical examination, communication, and clinical decision-making skills); (b) observation and feedback; (c) role-modeling; (d) team building among trainees, attending, and patient; (e) improved patient care delivery through combined clinical decision-making and team consensus; and (f) the culture of medicine as patient-centered care, which was embodied in all themes. CONCLUSIONS: Bedside teachers identify potential benefits of bedside rounds, many of which align with national calls to change our approach to medical education. The practice of bedside rounds enables activities essential to high-quality patient care and education.