Patient perceptions of professionalism: implications for residency education.

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was three-fold: to identify which behavioural, communicative and personal presentation characteristics most closely represent patients' views of professionalism; to determine whether patients perceive resident doctors as displaying these characteristics, and to explore whether or not resident doctor professional behaviour creates an impression of clinical competence to the degree where patients perceive a decreased need for Attending Physician involvement. METHODS We carried out a descriptive, cross-sectional study at an academic centre. An anonymous, voluntary four-question survey with multiple items was administered to all adult patients or the parents of paediatric patients attending an ophthalmology clinic who were seen by a resident doctor followed by an Attending Physician. RESULTS A total of 133 of 148 (90%) surveys were returned. All the itemised characteristics of professionalism were reported to be important or very important to the majority of participants.The most important were: 'Pays attention to my concerns' (90%); 'Is compassionate' (83%), and 'Speaks in terms that I can understand' (83%). Although 85% of respondents reported that resident doctors demonstrated all the characteristics of professionalism listed on the survey, 83% of participants stated that it was important or very important that residents have Attending Physician involvement. CONCLUSIONS Patient-centred components of professionalism, such as communication skills and compassion, are more important to patients than social behaviours, such as appearance and acknowledgement of family members. Resident doctors are perceived to display a high level of professionalism during patient care. Patients clearly desire direct resident doctor

Optimal learning environments from the perspective of resident physicians and associations with accreditation length.

BACKGROUND: Indicators of program quality in graduate medical education have not been thoroughly well developed or studied. This study explores resident physicians' perceptions of program quality and associations with an external quality indicator. METHOD: Responses to two open-ended questions about program strengths and areas in need of improvement were analyzed for 392 residents from 14 specialty programs that were reaccredited between 1999 and 2005. Computerized text analysis facilitated reliable categorization of 1,502 comments. Mann-Whitney U tests and nonparametric analyses for correlated data were used to examine associations between resident perceptions and accreditation length. RESULTS: The most frequently mentioned program strengths were related to the quality of faculty, exposure to patients, education, and the social environment. Of these core strengths, residents in programs with longer cycle lengths had significantly more comments about the quality of faculty in their program. CONCLUSIONS: Resident feedback can provide beneficial information about dimensions of program quality and the learning environment.

A Graduate Medical Education Initiative to Promote Professional Excellence Among Residency Program Coordinators.

BACKGROUND: The authors describe the scope and impact of a professional development program for residency and fellowship program coordinators (PCs) at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine. PCs are vital in the success of their residency programs, yet few articles to date have addressed their increasingly complex roles. PURPOSE: This exploratory study examines PCs' professional characteristics, perceptions that influence professional development meeting attendance, and the impact of the Program Coordinators' Organization (PCO). METHODS: All 44 PCs serving 53 residency and fellowship programs at UAMS were surveyed about their perceptions of the PCO in January 2006. RESULTS: The majority of respondents agreed that the PCO has improved their abilities and interactions with their supervisors, colleagues, and residents and that the PCO has made an institution-wide impact on residency education. CONCLUSIONS: Sponsoring a PCO may be an effective tool for organizations to enhance the role of PCs and their graduate medical education programs.