Advances in Medical Education and Practice (Oct 2020)
Medical Student Schwartz Rounds: A Powerful Medium for Medical Student Reflective Practice
Abstract
David Gleeson, James Arwyn-Jones, Mariam Awan, Isabel White, Omid Halse Medical Education, Charing Cross Hospital, Imperial College London, London, UKCorrespondence: David GleesonCharing Cross Hospital, Imperial College London, Fulham Palace Rd, Hammersmith, London W6 8RF, UKTel +44 020 3311 1234Email [email protected]: Reflection is a core component of good medical practice and of growing importance given increasing rates of burnout in the field of medicine. Schwartz Rounds (SRs) are a group-based model of reflective practice. This study explored the utility of student-specific Schwartz Rounds as a medium for reflective practice amongst medical students entering their first year of clinical attachments, and how effective these are compared to standard organisation-wide Schwartz Rounds.Methods: Three Medical Student Schwartz Rounds (MSSRs) were piloted over the course of a year at a major teaching hospital, focussed on the theme: “Is this what I signed up for?” Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire following the session, and this data was then analysed.Results: Feedback was obtained from 93% (42/45) students who attended. Ninety per cent of students rated the sessions as “excellent or exceptional”, 93% felt the MSSRs added to their “insight and self-awareness”, and 90% plan to attend SRs again in the future. A thematic analysis of the qualitative feedback highlighted three broad themes from the pilot; group reflection is more profound than individual reflection, sharing experiences facilitated a greater sense of belonging, and group reflective practice can be intimidating. There was a statistically significant difference between students’ ratings of MSSRs, rated 8.67/10, versus written reflection, rated 4.64/10 (p< 0.01).Conclusion: Students were overwhelmingly positive about their experiences in this pilot, with response ratings commensurate with those from organisation-wide Schwartz Rounds. Therefore, MSSRs should be considered as a valid alternative form of reflective practice.Keywords: medical education, reflective practice, group-based reflection, Schwartz Rounds
