Project description:IntroductionThe Academic Life in Emergency Medicine (ALiEM) Faculty Incubator program is a longitudinal, 1-year, virtual faculty development program for early- and mid-career faculty members that crosses specialties and institutions. This study sought to evaluate the outcomes among 3 years of participants.MethodsThis cross-sectional survey study evaluated postcourse and 1-year outcomes from three graduated classes of the ALiEM Faculty Incubator program. The program evaluation survey was designed to collect outcomes across multiple Kirkpatrick levels using pre/post surveys and tracking of abstracts, publications, speaking opportunities, new leadership positions, and new curricula.ResultsOver 3 years, 89 clinician educators participated in the program. Of those, 59 (66%) completed the initial survey and 33 (37%) completed the 1-year survey. Participants reported a significant increase in knowledge (4.1/9.0 vs. 7.0/9.0). The number of abstracts, publications, and invited presentations significantly increased after course completion and continued postcourse. A total of 37 of 59 (62.7%) developed a new curriculum during the course and 19 of 33 (57.6%) developed another new curriculum after the course. A total of 29 of 59 (49.2%) began a new leadership position upon course completion with 15 of 33 (45.5%) beginning another new leadership position 1 year later.DiscussionThe ALiEM Faculty Incubator program demonstrated an increase in perceived knowledge and documented academic productivity among early- and mid-career medical educators.
Project description:IntroductionThe patient experience (PX) is central to improving the quality of healthcare services. We launched a PX capacity- and capability-building program at the Armed Forces Hospitals Taif Region, which is integral to our regional healthcare cluster transformation plans and is an initial step toward developing a culture of improvement in human experience in healthcare.MethodsA multidisciplinary PX committee recruited five frontline interprofessional PX heads, one from each of our regional healthcare hospitals. The Kirkpatrick model for program evaluation was used to assess the impact on four key levels: reaction, learning, behavior, and results. A pre-program competency assessment was conducted to evaluate the level of expertise across various PX competencies, and a program curriculum was developed accordingly. Participants underwent an intensive workshop-based PX capacity-building training program. A post-program competency assessment was performed along with a post-program survey. The PX-related activities led by interprofessional frontline PX heads at their respective hospitals' post-programs were tracked. The impact on the regional PX mean score across various settings, including inpatient, outpatient, and emergency settings, was measured using Press Ganey PX surveys. Our work is reported in accordance with the SQUIRE-EDU guidelines of the EQUATOR network.ResultsThe PX capacity-building program led to a significant improvement in participants' expertise across various PX competencies. Significant improvements beyond the strategic targets were observed in the PX mean score in inpatient departments pre-program (83.31) vs. post-program (86.34), with a p-value of < 0.001 across the regional healthcare system.ConclusionThe PX capacity-building program is a first step toward major cultural change amid the healthcare cluster transformation in our regional healthcare system. The Kirkpatrick model helps evaluate the impact of PX capacity- and capability-building training programs comprehensively through an organizational approach. Sustainable improvements in PX over a long period through a capacity-building program alone remain challenging.
Project description:BACKGROUND: The Stanford Anesthesia Teaching Scholars Program was launched in 2007 to further pedagogic training of faculty and improve residency education. OBJECTIVES: The goals of this article are to describe the program intervention and improvements made based on participant feedback, summarize the characteristics of the faculty enrolled and projects undertaken, and report on program outcomes tracked to date. INTERVENTION: THE TEACHING SCHOLARS PROGRAM HOUSED WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF ANESTHESIA SUPPORTS FACULTY IN THESE AREAS: (1) attending education-related meetings; (2) engaging in a monthly seminar on core topics paired with independent study reading; and (3) undertaking a project to improve resident education. Structured interviews with all graduates (n = 19; 47% women) were conducted using a pilot-tested questionnaire. RESULTS: A total of 15 of 19 Scholars (79%) were instructors/assistant professors. Sixteen Scholars (84%) attended an off-site education meeting. The Scholars pursued a variety of projects, including curriculum (53%), teaching (26%), administration (11%), assessment (5%), and advising/mentoring (5%). Projects were fully completed by 13 of 19 participants (68%), and 12 of 19 projects (63%) are currently integrated into the residency. Completed projects were published/presented at conferences by 4 of 13 participants (31%), and education grants were received by 3 of 19 participants (16%). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first description of a faculty development (education) program in an anesthesiology department. The program has been well accepted by participants and resulted in increased educational products, some of which have become a permanent part of the residency curriculum. This educational innovation can be replicated in other departments of anesthesiology provided that funding is available for faculty time and meeting expenses.
Project description:PurposeMedical professionals from Korea and Laos have been working together to develop a continuing professional development training program covering the major clinical fields of primary care. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the program from 2013 to 2014 using the Kirkpatrick model.MethodsA questionnaire was used to evaluate the reaction of the trainees, and the trainers assessed the level of trainees' performance at the beginning and the end of each clinical section. The transfer (behavioral change) of the trainees was evaluated through the review of medical records written by the trainees before and after the training program.ResultsThe trainees were satisfied with the training program, for which the average score was 4.48 out of 5.0. The average score of the trainees' performance at the beginning was 2.39 out of 5.0, and rose to 3.88 at the end of each section. The average score of the medical records written before the training was 2.92 out of 5.0, and it rose to 3.34 after the training. The number of patient visits to the district hospitals increased.ConclusionThe continuing professional development training program, which was planned and implemented with the full engagement and responsibility of Lao health professionals, proved to be effective.
Project description:Purpose: The Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program (AMFDP), a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, seeks to support academic physicians from historically disadvantaged backgrounds and serves as a model program for promoting faculty diversity and health equity. Our objective was to determine differences in scientific productivity, promotions and retentions, and leadership attainment among faculty applicants to this national minority faculty development program. Methods: Final-round interview applicants from 2003 to 2008 were selected. Differences in publications, grants, promotions/retentions, and leadership positions through 2013 were compared between funded scholars and unfunded nonscholars. Semistructured interviews were conducted to identify factors that facilitated and hindered academic success. Results: A total of 124 applicants (76 scholars and 48 nonscholars) who participated in final-round interviews from 2003 to 2008 were eligible. Scholars and nonscholars had similar number of publications. Scholars had greater number of grants and grant dollars, but differences were not significant after accounting for AMFDP program awards. Scholars were more likely to hold leadership positions (28% vs. 10%, p=0.02), but equally likely to be promoted (67% vs. 58%, p=0.32) and retained (84% vs. 75%, p=0.21). In interviews, all participants endorsed mentoring, funding, and nonscientific education to academic success, but scholars reported greater availability of leadership opportunities consequent to AMFDP. Conclusion: There were few differences in academic productivity attributable to a national faculty diversity program. However, program participants were more likely to endorse and attain leadership positions. Academic institutions should consider facilitating leadership development of minority faculty as a means of advancing health equity research and training.
Project description:Graduate medical education (GME) has shifted its curricula from process-oriented approach to outcomes-oriented models. Program and faculty evaluation are methods by which educational curricula may adjust the teaching and learning environment to meet the needs and fills the gaps in GME. The measurement of educational outcomes is an essential for assessing teaching effectiveness in a shifting health care environment. In addition to trainee, program, and faculty evaluations, annual program review (APR) and evaluation and navigational changes made by the program education committee are essential to maintain effectiveness of an educational curriculum in a contemporary graduate medical training program.
Project description:Biological macromolecules have complex three-dimensional shapes that are experimentally examined using X-ray crystallography and electron cryo-microscopy. Interpreting the data that these methods yield involves building 3D atomic models. With almost every data set, some portion of the time put into creating these models must be spent manually modifying the model in order to make it consistent with the data; this is difficult and time-consuming, in part because the data are `blurry' in three dimensions. This paper describes the design and assessment of CootVR (available at http://hamishtodd1.github.io/cvr), a prototype computer program for performing this task in virtual reality, allowing structural biologists to build molecular models into cryo-EM and crystallographic data using their hands. CootVR was timed against Coot for a very specific model-building task, and was found to give an order-of-magnitude speedup for this task. A from-scratch model build using CootVR was also attempted; from this experience it is concluded that currently CootVR does not give a speedup over Coot overall.
Project description:Faculty development (FD) programs are critical for providing the knowledge and skills necessary to drive positive change in health professions education, but they take many forms to attain the program goals. The Macy Faculty Scholars Program (MFSP), created by the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation (JMJF) in 2010, intends to develop participants as leaders, scholars, teachers, and mentors. After a decade of implementation, an external review committee conducted a program evaluation to determine how well the program met its intended goals and defined options for ongoing improvement.The committee selected Stufflebeam's CIPP (context, input, process, products) framework to guide the program evaluation. Context and input components were derived from the MFSP description and demographic data, respectively. Process and product components were obtained through a mixed-methods approach, utilizing both quantitative and qualitative data obtained from participant survey responses, and curriculum vitae (CV).The evaluation found participants responded favorably to the program and demonstrated an overall increase in academic productivity, most pronounced during the two years of the program. Mentorship, community of practice, and protected time were cited as major strengths. Areas for improvement included: enhancing the diversity of program participants, program leaders and mentors across multiple sociodemographic domains; leveraging technology to strengthen the MFSP community of practice; and improving flexibility of the program.The program evaluation results provide evidence supporting ongoing investment in faculty educators and summarizes key strengths and areas for improvement to inform future FD efforts for both the MFSP and other FD programs.
Project description:The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) has a history of providing a wide range of faculty development opportunities. Recently, ASM developed the Science Teaching Fellows Program (STF) for early career biologists and postdoctoral students to explore student-centered teaching and develop the skills needed to succeed in positions that have a significant teaching component. Participants were selected to STF through a competitive application process. The STF program consisted of a series of six webinars. In preparation for each webinar, participants completed a pre-webinar assignment. After each webinar, fellows practiced what they learned by completing a post-webinar assignment. In a survey used to assess the impact of STF, participants reported greater knowledge of the webinar-based instructional topics and a sense of being part of an educational community and were more confident about varied teaching methods.
Project description:This article shares our experiences and surprises as we developed, implemented and evaluated a 12-week faculty development program for registrars as clinical supervisors over three cohorts. The program has consistently been rated highly by participants. Yet, following a comprehensive curriculum review, we were surprised that our goal of encouraging identity development in clinical supervisors seemed to be unmet. Whilst our evaluation suggests that the program made important contributions to the registrars' knowledge, application and readiness as clinical supervisors, challenges linked to developing a supervisor identity and managing the dual identity of supervisor and clinician remain. In this article we describe our program and argue for the importance of designing faculty development programs to support professional identity formation. We present the findings from our program evaluation and discuss the surprising outcomes and ongoing challenges of developing a cohesive clinical educator identity. Informed by recent evidence and workplace learning theory we critically appraise our program, explain the mechanisms for the unintended outcomes and offer suggestions for improving curricular and pedagogic practices of embedded faculty development programs. A key recommendation is to not only consider identity formation of clinical supervisors from an individualist perspective but also from a social perspective.