Perceived social support: A study of genetic counseling graduate students in the United States (US) and Canada.

Social support is described as having positive psychological and physical outcomes and offers some protective benefits against mental illness. However, research has not addressed social support for genetic counseling graduate students, although this population is prone to elevated levels of stress in addition to field-specific phenomena like compassion fatigue and burnout. Therefore, an online survey was distributed to genetic counseling students in accredited programs in the United States and Canada to synthesize information about (1) demographic information, (2) self-identified sources of support, and (3) the availability of a strong support network. In total, 238 responses were included in the analysis, yielding a mean social support score of 3.84 on a 5-point scale, where higher scores indicate increased social support. The identification of friends or classmates as forms of social support significantly increased social support scores (p < 0.001; p = 0.006, respectively). There was also a positive correlation between increased social support scores and the number of social support outlets (p = 0.01). Subgroup analysis focused on potential differences in social support for racially/ethnically underrepresented participants (comprising less than 22% of respondents), revealing that this population identified friends as a form of social support significantly less often than their White counterparts; and mean social support scores were also significantly lower. Our study underscores the importance of classmates as a source of social support for genetic counseling graduate students while uncovering discrepancies that exist in social support sources between White and underrepresented students. Ultimately, stakeholders in genetic counseling student success should foster a community and culture of support within a training program (whether traditionally in-person or online) to encourage success among all students.

Characterizing the research mentorship experience of genetic counseling students.

The Accreditation Council for Genetic Counseling's Practice-Based Competencies include research-related skills, which are taught in master's level genetic counseling programs through didactic coursework and completion of mentored research experiences. It is known that research mentors can impact student work environments, create positive perceptions of the research process, and increase students' likelihood of future involvement in research. However, few studies have characterized the experiences of GC students in receiving research mentorship. It is crucial to understand these experiences from student perspectives to better inform stakeholders about factors that impact mentorship. Using a mixed-methods approach, this study explored GC students' experiences receiving research mentorship and their thoughts regarding the successful qualities of research mentors. GC students (N = 165) who graduated between 2019 and 2022 responded to an online survey measuring the mentorship relationship, defined by the Advisory Working Alliance Inventory (AWAI). On average, participants scored 3.96/5 on the AWAI, where higher scores indicate stronger working alliances. When asked to describe their overall research experience in three words, 75.7% of participants used at least one negatively connotated descriptor. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews obtained via purposive sampling of highest and lowest scoring participants on the AWAI (N = 14) revealed the following five themes related to successful qualities of a research mentor: (1) communication; (2) rapport building and relationship; (3) engagement and guidance; (4) expertise and connections; and (5) mentors with different roles. Of note, many of these qualities are foundational skills in genetic counseling. Thus, genetic counselors who may be strong in these areas who do not identify as "researchers" ought to consider becoming a research committee member. Additionally, education programs could consider implementing research committee member evaluations and/or student research self-efficacy surveys to evaluate how these relationships may be shaping research experiences for students within their program.

Exploring the impacts of learning modality changes: Validation of the learning modality change community of inquiry and self-efficacy scales.

The rapid learning environment transition initiated by the COVID-19 pandemic impacted students' perception of, comfort with, and self-efficacy in the online learning environment. Garrison's Community of Inquiry framework provides a lens for examining students' online learning experiences through three interdependent elements: social presence, cognitive presence, and teaching presence. Researchers in this study developed and validated the Learning Modality Change Community of Inquiry and Self-Efficacy scales to measure health professions students' self-efficacy with online learning, while exploring how cognitive, social, and teaching presence is experienced by students who transition from one learning environment to another. The two scales demonstrate strong validity and reliability evidence and can be used by educators to explore the impacts of learning modality changes on student learning experiences. As learning environments continue to evolve, understanding the impact of these transitions can inform how educators consider curriculum design and learning environment changes.

Innovation in early medical education, no bells or whistles required.

BACKGROUND: Despite a paucity of evidence to support a multitude of educational innovations, curricular leaders are pressured to find innovative solutions to better prepare medical students for an evolving twenty-first century health care system. As part of this effort, this study directly compared student-rated effectiveness scores of six different learning modalities. METHODS: Study participants included 286 medical students enrolled in the second-year rheumatology core at a single academic medical center between 2013 and 2017. Students were surveyed at the end of the core with a 15-item questionnaire, and student perceived effectiveness of six different learning modalities were compared. RESULTS: The modality that outperformed all others was Live Patient Encounters (LPE), with significantly higher student-rated effectiveness scores when compared to the referent modality of Problem-Based Learning (PBL). Using a 5-point Likert scale with responses ranging from "not effective" to "highly effective," LPE received a mean effectiveness score of 4.77 followed by Augenblick (4.21), PBL (4.11), Gout Racer video game (3.49), Rheumatology Remedy e-module (3.49), and simulation knee injection (3.09). CONCLUSIONS: Technologically advanced novel learning strategies were outperformed in this study by the more traditional active learning modality of LPE. This finding highlights the importance of testing innovative learning strategies at the level of the learner. Three additional conclusions can be drawn from this result. First, conflation of technology with innovation may lead to a myopic view of educational reform. Second, human factors seem to be responsible for the success of LPE and may have far-reaching educational rewards. Third, further applications of LPE should be tested in non-rheumatologic curricula. The relevance of this study is innately tied to the humanities-based application. While a formal qualitative analysis was not performed in this study, preliminary results suggest that live, structured patient interactions in the pre-clinical years of medical education may not only promote the learning of important educational objectives but also foster professional development, empathy, reflection, leadership, agency, and interpersonal skills. This "win-win" scenario (if true) would stand out as a rarity among strategic educational initiatives.

Fix Your Leaky Pipeline: Support Women in Pursuit of Advanced Degrees.

Completing a doctoral program is a daunting journey for any individual. Working full-time and juggling personal demands make the journey more complex. This monograph explores the unique motivations women who travel this path possess, identifies barriers in completion of a doctoral program for women, and tells the story of one group of women who developed a working model for a supportive writing group. As numbers of female health professions students and education leaders increase, institutions must identify mechanisms for support of women interested in pursuing an academic doctoral degree, preparing academic institutions for future diversity changes in health care.

Improving Outcomes.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the strength of study design and outcomes in literature describing pathology education for medical students. METHODS: A search was conducted for articles related to pathology education published over 45 years describing an educational intervention. The primary data collected included phase of education, domain of objectives, number of learners and institutions, type of intervention, use of a comparison/control group, randomization, and strength of statistical analysis. RESULTS: Of 655 articles, 54 (8%) met inclusion criteria. The majority (65%) reported experiences of 100 learners or fewer, and only one was multi-institutional. Only 46% used a comparison/control group. Statistical significance of results was not reported in 39%. None examined outcomes at a point distant from the educational intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Most studies describing pathology educational interventions are not of strong experimental design. Consumers of educational research should be cognizant of these potential weaknesses in educational studies.