Inpatient and Ambulatory Community Pediatrics Student Evaluations

Abstract

Abstract These competency-driven assessment instruments were used for the inpatient and ambulatory experiences of the third-year medical student clerkship at Morehouse School of Medicine. Competencies address several key areas including history and physical taking, communication, anticipatory guidance, factual knowledge, evidence-based medicine, systems-based learning, recognition of the acutely ill child, growth and development, age/size appropriate care, child abuse, and professionalism. They are based on the national Committee on Medical Student Education in Pediatrics curriculum. Competency-based evaluations clearly define the expectations and allow the learners and faculty to understand exactly what skill levels that we are evaluating. Our evaluation form attaches specific behavioral “anchors” to the levels of competency, directing evaluators away from making assessments based on general impressions of the student. In addition, specific behaviors allow students to match expectations in a more uniform fashion based on a specific form not as susceptible to the whims and individual variance of evaluators. Competency-based evaluation also clearly defines the expectation that it is the end of the clinical rotation evaluation that is judged for a grade, rather than the performance over the length of the rotation. While not entirely organized according to the ACGME competencies, our evaluations do allow our students to understand the “continuum” of medical education evaluation and allows them to acclimate to the type of evaluation that is expected in residency training.

Keywords

• Educational Measurement
• Education
• COMSEP