Emotional experiences of medical students during cadaver dissection and the role of memorial ceremonies: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: It has been well reported that the emotional experiences of medical students in the gross anatomy laboratory could have significant impacts on their professional identity formation. This qualitative study aimed to investigate students' emotions towards cadaver dissection and the educational role of memorial ceremonies. METHODS: A total of 37 students from eight teams were recruited in the team-based dissection course during two consecutive academic years (2016 and 2017) at one medical school. In focus group interviews, students were encouraged to express and discuss their emotions regarding cadaver dissection and memorial ceremonies. RESULTS: The participants described their apprehension and anxiety during their first encounter with cadavers that diminished through gradual exposure. Unfortunately, their positive emotions such as gratitude and responsibility also tended to decline under the pressure of excessive workloads and frequent examinations. Memorial ceremonies, including not only large-scale events but also daily rituals, had educational effects that they prevented the decline of students' responsibility and respect during the dissection course. CONCLUSION: Educators should assist medical students in overcoming their initial distress and maintaining respectful attitudes throughout the dissection course. Memorial ceremonies can be effective educational tools for fostering appropriate attitudes and ethical practice in the gross anatomy laboratory.

Development an instrument assessing residents' attitude towards professionalism lapses in training.

PURPOSE: Medical professionalism is a fundamental competency for all physicians and continuous development of professionalism during residency training is crucial. The purpose of this study was to develop an instrument assessing residents' attitudes toward unprofessional behaviors. METHODS: A questionnaire survey was conducted in cooperation with the Korea Resident Association from May to July 2013. A total of 317 residents from seven university-affiliated hospitals in South Korea participated in the survey. RESULTS: In the exploratory factor analysis, seven factors were extracted from the data; factor loadings of the 44 items ranged between 0.40 and 0.89. Through iterative discussion, three items below 0.45 were deleted and one additional item was removed due to its irrelevance. Twelve items included in Factor 1 were divided into two different categories. A final version of the questionnaire containing 40 items in eight categories was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis. It was deemed to have a good fit; the root mean square error of approximation and comparative fit index were 0.07 and 0.9, respectively. The reliability (Cronbach's α) of the inventory was 0.97. CONCLUSION: The items of this instrument encompass a broad range of residents' behaviors in clinical practice, research, and publication. In addition, it includes some types of misconduct that can be considered unique features of the authors' cultural backgrounds. We recommend this instrument as an assessment tool to diagnose residents' perceptions and attitudes towards professionalism lapses and to provide insight regarding potential improvement in professionalism education.

Causes of resident lapses in professional conduct during the training: A qualitative study on the perspectives of residents.

BACKGROUND: The residency is a critical period for doctors to establish their professional identity and ethical standards, and yet during this time, residents are susceptible to engage in a diverse range of unprofessional behaviors. To prevent the misconduct of residents, it is critical to have a thorough understanding of the contributing factors or circumstances. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative study on 20 residents at one Korean university-affiliated tertiary hospital. During in-depth interviews, residents were asked to reveal their experiences or observations of misconduct, and describe their perceptions on the attributes of professional lapses. RESULTS: Diverse unethical and unprofessional behaviors were extracted from the transcripts and reported in a previous paper. In the current paper, the attributes that residents regarded as the causes of their unprofessional behaviors were identified within four categories: (1) inadequate systems within training hospitals; (2) lack of professionalism education; (3) strong hierarchical structure; and (4) poor character of individuals. The residents tended to perceive their misconduct as situation-sensitive, and emphasized the importance of systematic and cultural changes. CONCLUSIONS: To enhance medical professionalism among residents, the results of this study suggest the need of systematic and structured training programs, adequate professionalism education with clear codes of conduct, and active monitoring and feedback systems.

A functional neuroimaging study of the clinical reasoning of medical students.

As clinical reasoning is a fundamental competence of physicians for good clinical practices, medical academics have endeavored to teach reasoning skills to undergraduate students. However, our current understanding of student-level clinical reasoning is limited, mainly because of the lack of evaluation tools for this internal cognitive process. This functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study aimed to examine the clinical reasoning processes of medical students in response to problem-solving questions. We recruited 24 2nd-year medical students who had completed their preclinical curriculum. They answered 40 clinical vignette-based multiple-choice questions during fMRI scanning. We compared the imaging data for 20 problem-solving questions (reasoning task) and 20 recall questions (recall task). Compared to the recall task, the reasoning task resulted in significantly greater activation in nine brain regions, including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and inferior parietal cortex, which are known to be associated with executive function and deductive reasoning. During the recall task, significant activation was observed in the brain regions that are related to memory and emotions, including the amygdala and ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Our results support that medical students mainly solve clinical questions with deductive reasoning involving prior knowledge structures and executive functions. The problem-solving questions induced the students to utilize higher cognitive functions compared with the recall questions. Interestingly, the results suggested that the students experienced some emotional distress while they were solving the recall questions. In addition, these results suggest that fMRI is a promising research tool for investigating students' cognitive processes.

Investigation of Unethical and Unprofessional Behavior in Korean Residency Training.

UNLABELLED: PHENOMENON: Medical ethics and professionalism are fundamental competencies for all physicians, and resident physicians have to develop these competencies during their training. Although Korea has a reputation for having the highest quality medical practice in East Asia, improvements in the technological aspects of care have outpaced the developments in institutional systems and education needed to fulfill social responsibility. Enhancing professionalism education during postgraduate training requires thorough exposition of this situation. APPROACH: Twenty residents from 17 clinical departments at 1 Korean tertiary university-affiliated hospital were recruited, and in-depth interviews were conducted in person by an interviewer who was a fellow resident with participants. Interviewees recalled and described personal experiences or observations of misbehaviors that had occurred during their residency training. Researchers recorded and transcribed all interviews, and 4 researchers conducted a thematic analysis. FINDINGS: Authors extracted 48 descriptors representing 8 categories of unethical and unprofessional behaviors from the transcripts: (a) substandard practice, (b) violation of work ethics, (c) misconduct related to conflict of interest, (d) dishonesty with patients, (e) violation of patient confidentiality, (f) lack of respect for patients, (g) lack of respect for colleagues, and (h) misconduct in research. Each of the interviewees mentioned between 3 and 18 descriptors. "Not fulfilling basic duties for patient care" was the most frequently mentioned misconduct, followed by "fabricating patient medical status or test results to meet preoperative criteria for anesthesia" and "verbal or physical abuse of junior doctors." INSIGHTS: Residents reported a diverse variety of unethical and unprofessional behaviors throughout their training and described the ethical distress they suffered in the real clinical situations. The results of this study support the notion that reinforcing ethics and professionalism education during postgraduate medical training in a practical and authentic way will help trainees manage the ethical conflicts or dilemmas they will inevitably encounter.

[Needs assessment of a core curriculum for residency training].

PURPOSE: The core curriculum in graduate medical education (GME) is an educational program that covers the minimum body of knowledge and skills that is required of all residents, regardless of their specialty. This study examined the opinions of stakeholders in GME regarding the core curriculum. METHODS: A questionnaire was administered at three tertiary hospitals that were affiliated with one university; 192 residents and 61 faculty members and attending physicians participated in the survey. The questionnaire comprised six items on physician competency and the needs for a core curriculum. Questions on subjects or topics and adequate training years for each topics were asked only to residents. RESULTS: Most residents (78.6%) and faculty members (86.9%) chose "medical expertise" as the "doctor's role in the 21st century." In contrast, communicator, manager, and collaborator were recognized by less than 30% of all participants. Most residents (74.1%) responded that a core curriculum is "necessary but not feasible," whereas 68.3% of faculty members answered that it is "absolutely needed." Regarding subjects that should be included in the core curriculum, residents and faculty members had disparate preferences- residents preferred more "management of a private clinic" and "financial management," whereas faculty members desired "medical ethics" and "communication skills." CONCLUSION: Residents and faculty members agree that residents should develop a wide range of competencies in their training. However, the perception of the feasibility and opinions on the contents of the core curriculum differed between groups. Further studies with larger samples should be conducted to define the roles and professional competencies of physicians and the needs for a core curriculum in GME.