Post graduate remediation programs in medicine: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Recognizing that physicians may struggle to achieve knowledge, skills, attitudes and or conduct at one or more stages during their training has highlighted the importance of the 'deliberate practice of improving performance through practising beyond one's comfort level under guidance'. However, variations in physician, program, contextual and healthcare and educational systems complicate efforts to create a consistent approach to remediation. Balancing the inevitable disparities in approaches and settings with the need for continuity and effective oversight of the remediation process, as well as the context and population specific nature of remediation, this review will scrutinise the remediation of physicians in training to better guide the design, structuring and oversight of new remediation programs. METHODS: Krishna's Systematic Evidence Based Approach is adopted to guide this Systematic Scoping Review (SSR in SEBA) to enhance the transparency and reproducibility of this review. A structured search for articles on remediation programs for licenced physicians who have completed their pre-registration postings and who are in training positions published between 1st January 1990 and 31st December 2021 in PubMed, Scopus, ERIC, Google Scholar, PsycINFO, ASSIA, HMIC, DARE and Web of Science databases was carried out. The included articles were concurrently thematically and content analysed using SEBA's Split Approach. Similarities in the identified themes and categories were combined in the Jigsaw Perspective and compared with the tabulated summaries of included articles in the Funnelling Process to create the domains that will guide discussions. RESULTS: The research team retrieved 5512 abstracts, reviewed 304 full-text articles and included 101 articles. The domains identified were characteristics, indications, frameworks, domains, enablers and barriers and unique features of remediation in licenced physicians in training programs. CONCLUSION: Building upon our findings and guided by Hauer et al. approach to remediation and Taylor and Hamdy's Multi-theories Model, we proffer a theoretically grounded 7-stage evidence-based remediation framework to enhance understanding of remediation in licenced physicians in training programs. We believe this framework can guide program design and reframe remediation's role as an integral part of training programs and a source of support and professional, academic, research, interprofessional and personal development.

Training in emerging advances in chronic hepatitis C infection in Pakistan: the Teach - Pak project.

PURPOSE: Viral hepatitis B and C represent the primary health challenge confronting Asia and Pakistan. With direct-acting antiviral therapy for hepatitis C, patients will be treated by general physicians (GPs) and will need training through continuing medical education (CME). Blended learning is a combination of didactic teaching with online, self-paced learning, and it has not been evaluated as a CME tool for general physicians. We aimed to compare the change in physician's knowledge about chronic viral hepatitis following a blended learning educational program. METHODS: Participants enrolled in a 6 week blended learning program comprising three modules, each of 2 weeks duration. These were: 1) epidemiology and prevention of viral hepatitis; 2) diagnosis and assessment of hepatitis; and 3) treatment of hepatitis. Activities were primarily web based with some face-to-face interactive sessions. All study material was available on the Teach - Pak website. Discussions, questions, and comments were encouraged. An overall pre-and postintervention knowledge assessment was performed, in addition to individual module assessments. RESULTS: A total of 48 participants completed the program; 39 passed (81.25%). The participants were from diverse backgrounds with variable previous training. The pass rate rose from 16.1% at the start of the program to 81.2% at the conclusion. The mean pretest score was 26.0 (standard deviation =4.36), while the mean posttest score was 34.6 (standard deviation =5.15), showing an increase in the mean score of 8.56 points. Eighty four percent had completed at least one credit hour for CME as compared to those who did not pass the posttest (44.4% p-value =0.02). No significant differences in results of posttest were observed in the categories of participant's age, years since graduation, or years of experience. The participants were satisfied with the blended learning mode of teaching. CONCLUSION: Blended learning is an efficient way to impart hepatitis CME to a diverse group of postgraduate physicians.

Stigma and Attitudes toward Patients with Psychiatric Illness among Postgraduate Indian Physicians.

BACKGROUND: Due to paucity of psychiatrists in India, psychiatric patients often present to other doctors. We aimed to study nonpsychiatric residents' attitude and stigma toward psychiatric patients. METHODS: A total of 57 postgraduate trainees participated in a cross-sectional study in a tertiary hospital in New Delhi. Attitudes to psychiatric patients were assessed using the attitude to mental illness questionnaire (AMIQ) and the perceived stigma questionnaire. This was correlated with sociodemographic information. RESULTS: Over 70% residents accepted mentally ill patients as friends and felt they were equally employable. However, AMIQ demonstrated a negative attitude towards patients with schizophrenia. Perceived competence in dealing with psychiatric patients was associated with adequate undergraduate exposure (Chi-square = 7.270, P = 0.026) and correlated with positive attitudes (t-test, P = 0.0008). CONCLUSIONS: While the questionnaires revealed some prejudice toward psychiatric patients with schizophrenia, the postgraduate trainees who felt competent to deal with the mentally ill had the most positive attitudes toward them.