MedEdPORTAL (Apr 2014)
Pediatric Health Supervision Curriculum: Instructor's Guide, Student Resources, Faculty Resources, and Assessment Tools
Abstract
Abstract Introduction The Pediatric Health Supervision Curriculum was developed to teach the fundamentals of pediatric preventive medicine to third-year medical students. The goals and objectives for the curriculum were developed based on the priorities outlined in Bright Futures: Guidelines for Health Supervision of Infants, Children and Adolescents, 3rd Ed. and the competencies related to health supervision of the 2005 Council on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics (COMSEP) pediatric clerkship curriculum. Methods Students view an introductory video at the beginning of the clerkship and work through six clinical cases with a faculty facilitator. Simultaneously, students use the Bright Futures Pocket Guide, 3rd Ed. and data collection templates to assist with actual clinical encounters. Formative evaluation of student performance includes feedback and rating of their participation in and leadership of the case discussions with a faculty rating tool and feedback on a health supervision clinic encounter with a structured feedback/evaluation form. Summative evaluation of student performance includes a multiple-choice exam to assess knowledge acquisition and a retrospective pre-/postassessment of student's own knowledge and skills. Results Since implementing the curriculum in the 2008-2009 academic year, approximately 640 students have completed the curriculum across seven clinical sites. From 2008-2010, 93% of students obtained a signature from a faculty member documenting an observed health supervision encounter. 97% of students obtained a signature from a faculty member documenting adequate preparation and participation in the health supervision cases. On the student end-of-clerkship evaluation, 60-65% of students “Strongly Agreed” or “Agreed” that the “Health Supervision cases gave me a good understanding of the approach to health supervision in children” and that the “Discussion of the Health Supervision cases added to my understanding of the approach to health supervision in children.” More students, however, about 70%, “Strongly Agreed” or “Agreed” that the “feedback I got from the structured observations helped me improve my clinical skills.” Discussion To our knowledge, there is no other published health supervision curriculum that addresses all of the goals and objectives outlined by the 2005 COMSEP curriculum. The educational strategies of the curriculum are varied to meet the needs of different learning styles and provide faculty and students with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to effectively deliver health supervision to children and adolescents.
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