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Biomedical subjects

M A Hitchcock

Publications and source records attributed to M A Hitchcock.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2002

Introducing professional educators into academic medicine: stories of exemplars.

This article describes an oral history project aimed at documenting the history and contributions of the innovation of hiring professional educators in medical schools to improve the education of medical students, residents, and fellows. Six professional educators who spent their careers in medical schools were chosen as Exemplars: Stephen Abrahamson, Ph.D.; Charles Dohner, Ph.D.; Arthur Elstein, Ph.D.; Hilliard Jason, M.D., Ph.D.; Christine McGuire, M.A.; and Frank Stritter, Ph.D. Pairs of senior professional educators currently working in medical schools interviewed the six Exemplars using a standardized protocol. Articles describing each Exemplar appear consecutively in this and subsequent issues of Advances in Health Professions Education. The series culminates with an article that presents the consensus conclusions of the series authors, based on the five study questions that guided the study and interview protocol.

Academic Medical Centers↗
PubMed2000

Teaching faculty to conduct problem-based learning.

PURPOSE: This article is aimed at those who undertake a transition to problem-based learning (PBL) and focuses on 3 questions that seem most pertinent to the effort: (a) what is known from past research about training faculty in the skills of PBL?, (b) what skills are important to teach faculty and how does one teach them?, and (c) what options are available for training faculty in PBL? SUMMARY: The success of any PBL curricular initiative requires the assistance of faculty skilled in PBL. The development of faculty with such skills must be a primary and ongoing concern of programs or schools launching such efforts. This article describes the research associated with training faculty to conduct PBL, the skills to be taught, and the training options available. CONCLUSIONS: Few studies document the impact of PBL faculty development strategies. Many faculty experience a difficult transition when retraining to PBL. Training faculty for PBL is often taken to mean training them to be tutors, but there are more skills involved in implementing PBL. Finally, there is an implied sequence to training faculty to implement PBL.

Education, Medical, Undergraduate↗
PubMed1999

Peer and self assessment during problem-based tutorials.

BACKGROUND: Peer and self assessment may contribute a unique and insightful perspective to a students' performance. This study investigates the association between self, peer, and faculty evaluations in the intimate setting of a problem-based tutorial group. METHODS: Third-year medical students participating in the required third-year surgical clerkship during the 1996-97 academic year (n = 154) were randomly assigned to problem-based learning groups and completed self and peer evaluations at the end of the last tutorial. These evaluations were compared with expert tutor ratings using Pearson correlation coefficients. RESULTS: A moderate correlation was found between peer and tutor ratings. There was very little correlation between self and tutor ratings. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that peer and self ratings in the setting of a tutorial group may provide additional valuable information regarding medical student performance during a surgery clerkship.

Clinical Clerkship↗
PubMed1999

Developing occupational and environmental medicine curricula for primary care residents: project EPOCH-Envi. Educating Physicians in OCupational Health and the Environment.

To help primary care residency programs develop or improve residency curricula in occupational and environmental medicine, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health launched a train-the-trainer initiative. This project was called EPOCH-Envi (Educating Physicians in OCcupational Health and the Environment). From 1990 to 1996, 46 2-day curriculum development workshops were held. These featured (1) guidelines on how to plan, implement, and evaluate a curriculum, (2) continuing education on occupational illnesses and injuries, (3) a worksite or environmental site visit, and (4) information resources. A total of 435 faculty from 305 residency programs participated, representing 42.5% of the family practice residencies and 24.9% of the internal medicine residencies in the United States. A survey conducted among attendees (60.4% response rate) 17 months after their workshop revealed that 65.6% of respondents had added lectures on occupational and environmental topics to the residency curriculum. Other curriculum improvements were also made. Primary care physicians manage most patients with occupational and environmental health problems or concerns. Providing technical assistance specifically designed to support occupational and environmental health education in primary care residencies can have a positive impact on curriculum content.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1997

Acquiring professional academic skills.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Successful family medicine faculty are proficient at the skills of the profession, ie, teaching, research, writing, and management. However, possessing these skills is not sufficient for building a successful academic career in family medicine. Successful faculty are also adept at learning, conforming to, and taking advantage of the norms, expectations, and reward structures of the profession. The addition of a conscious, systematic faculty development approach can improve the process and success of faculty learning these skills. Methods for teaching these skills to faculty are reviewed.

Career Mobility↗
PubMed1995

Professional networks: the influence of colleagues on the academic success of faculty.

BACKGROUND: Successful higher education faculty, those who get promoted and tenured, who get recognized for contributions, who produce more and significant research, frequently consult colleagues. This article summarizes what is known about colleague relationships with the hope of stimulating further research to extend current conclusions to medical school faculty. METHOD: In the spring of 1992, a systematic literature review was conducted using database searches and author review of 137 selected books and articles using a standard protocol; preference was given to articles that were data-oriented, used quality designs, and related directly to the topic. RESULTS: Forty-seven "best" sources, published between 1963 and 1991, were included in the review of (1) types and configurations of colleague relationships, (2) forming and maintaining colleague relationships, (3) colleague effects on faculty success, (4) functions of colleague relationships, (5) changes in colleague relationships over a career, and (6) effects on methods, size, and configuration of colleague relationships. CONCLUSION: Among the conclusions reached are that (1) there are a variety of types or configurations of colleague relationships, all with different functions and effects on faculty performance; (2) dyadic conceptions of colleague relationships are insufficient to explain the functions of colleague relationships; and (3) the most important source for developing colleague relationships is professional associations, while the least important source is one's own institution.

Faculty, Medical↗
PubMed1992

Faculty development in the health professions: conclusions and recommendations.

This report summarizes recent literature reviews and resource books on faculty development in the health professions and describes findings from articles not previously reviewed. Nine conclusions about faculty development in the health professions are drawn: (1) the concept of faculty development is evolving and expanding; (2) research skills are becoming a major focus of faculty development; (3) teaching skills are still a prominent aspect of faculty development; (4) fellowships are being used effectively to recruit and train new faculty; (5) the institutional environment has become a focus of faculty development; (6) faculty evaluation is an effective approach to faculty development; (7) the efficacy of faculty development needs better research documentation; (8) model curricula have been developed for different types of faculty; and (9) comprehensive faculty development centers are gaining in popularity. A set of recommendations based on the conclusions drawn is offered for those planning faculty development interventions.

Faculty, Medical↗
PubMed1992

The effect of patient education on pediatric immunization rates.

BACKGROUND: Over the last decade, the immunization rate among preschool children has decreased, especially in the lower socioeconomic population. During this period, reports of outbreaks of immunizable diseases, especially pertussis and measles, have correspondingly increased. This study was designed to evaluate the effect of a brief patient education encounter with new mothers on pediatric immunization rates. METHODS: Two hundred thirty-eight mothers and infants were assigned to an intervention or control group. On the first day postpartum, the mothers in the intervention group participated in a 10- to 15-minute discussion on the importance of immunizations and were given a patient education handout. A reminder letter was mailed to the intervention group at 2 months postpartum. The control group received no special intervention. Infants were followed for their 2- and 4-month immunizations for diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus and oral polio vaccine (DPT/OPV). At 1 year of age, the infants' immunization records were assessed for the completion of their first three DPT/OPV immunizations. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference, by chi-square analysis, in the immunization rates of the control and intervention groups at 2, 4, or 12 months of age. At 1 year of age, 29 of 122 (24%) of the control group had received all three DPT/OPV immunizations, compared with 33 (28%) of 116 infants in the intervention group. CONCLUSIONS: Concordant with similar studies, the immunization rate among infants of parents of lower socioeconomic status (26%) is low. An educational intervention presented to mothers in the postpartum period did not improve the rate of immunization by the age of 12 months. There are undoubtedly several reasons for this failure. Other means to improve immunization rates of infants should be developed and tested.

Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis Vaccine↗
PubMed1987

Faculty development fellowship programs in family medicine.

A new format for training medical school faculty members was begun in 1978 when the federal government and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation simultaneously began funding separate faculty development programs for family medicine faculty members. The goals of these two programs were to recruit and prepare new physician faculty members for family medicine educational programs. In the present study, the authors assessed the impact of these programs by a review of grant proposals and a survey of alumni for each program. They found that very different fellowship programs developed under these two funding sources. Consequently, the two programs produced participants who went to different academic settings and became involved in quite different activities, especially in the area of scholarly work. However, regardless of the program the participants chose, common factors were found to characterize those who were active in scholarly areas and those who were less active. Based on these findings, recommendations are offered to future planners and funders of faculty development programs for preparing new physician faculty members.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1987

Attitude assessment for family practice research.

One of the methods used often in family medicine research is the measurement of attitudes. This article reviews the options for measuring attitudes and explains the qualities attitude instruments must possess to be effective as research tools. Observations, interviews, surveys, standardized scales and self-constructed scales are reviewed as strategies for measuring attitudes. The most common scaling techniques for attitude measurement are also reviewed including: Likert scales, Semantic Differentials, rating scales, and Q-sorts. Methods for ensuring reliability and validity of attitude measurements are also reviewed. Examples of the techniques described are drawn from the family medicine literature to provide readers with references to techniques for use in research. References are also cited for technical guidance in developing the techniques described.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1986

Affective changes in faculty development fellows in family medicine.

The authors investigated the perceptions of 20 faculty development fellows in family medicine to determine whether they were more comfortable in clinical teaching roles after completing a fellowship. The fellows were asked to rate themselves and the ideal clinical teacher at the beginning and end of the fellowship. Comparisons of the fellows' pretest and posttest results were made on each of three factors (authority, sensitivity, and capability) that had been identified as characteristic of the ideal clinical teacher in family medicine. The results of the ratings indicated that the fellows changed their perceptions of themselves as clinical teachers substantially on two of the factors during the fellowship. In addition, on the posttest the fellows' perceptions of themselves matched their own profiles of ideal clinical teachers and on two of the factors matched the profile of an ideal clinical teacher of a sample of 215 clinical teachers in family medicine.

Faculty, Medical↗
PubMed1980

A statewide model for faculty development in family medicine.

The number of faculty needed to teach in family practice residency programs has increased as student demand for training in the specialty has grown. Residency programs have recruited practicing family physicians or recent graduates of residency programs as physician faculty members. The multiple demands of faculty positions and difficult periods of orientation to effective faculty functioning have been significant obstacles to recruitment and retention of faculty. A statewide Family Practice Faculty Development Center has been formed and has received support from Texas medical school family practice departments and free-standing residency programs. The Faculty Development Center utilizes a multidisciplinary staff to offer a range of programs including fellowships, preceptorships, institutes, and workshops, and conducts research projects in the area of teaching family medicine in order to aid faculty in current and new residency programs in acquiring excellent teaching, research, and administrative skills.

Faculty, Medical↗
PubMed1980

A model for developing clinical teaching skills of family practice teachers.

The development and implementation of a weekend workshop format for faculty development in family medicine, which has met with some success in the state of Texas, is described. The topic selected for the workshop was one-on-one clinical teaching skills because of its applicability to all levels of involvement of family practice faculty. The weekend format was selected because of its cost efficiency and mobility, which allowed the center to take training to the physicians, and because of its previously demonstrated effectiveness as a format for faculty development in family medicine. A model for clinical teaching was developed to aid workshop participants' easy acquisition of the clinical teaching process through the use of positive transfer of learning from the medical problem solving process, a process well internalized by physicians through medical practice and training.

Clinical Competence↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Research roles for family physicians.

This article describes five possible research roles for family physicians--tenure-track faculty member, clinical faculty member, practitioner-investigator, research network participant, and consumer of research--with the hope of encouraging more family physicians to identify an appropriate research role and contribute to the research mission of the discipline. In addition, issues specific to the various roles (eg, necessary skills, time for research) are identified and suggestions are provided for family physicians actively considering each role. Research has become critical to the future development of family medicine, and more family physicians (residents, faculty, and practitioners) need to become involved in research.

Efficiency↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Factors influencing student selection of family practice residency programs in Texas.

This study identified the relative influence of eight major factors on students' selections of family practice residency programs in Texas. All students (127) selected through the National Residency Matching Program in 1987 by 22 residency programs in Texas were surveyed. Based on a 91% response rate, 52 rating scale items were subjected to exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The resulting eight factors were rank ordered according to program type (eg, medical school based) based on mean scores of items that loaded on each factor. The factor most influential in students' selections of programs was the "quality of training" they perceived they would receive, while the least important factor was "resident compensation and benefits." Students who selected medical school based programs and community based, medical school affiliated programs differed significantly as to the importance they placed on the "academic orientation of the program" and the "attitude toward family physicians" in their program selections.

Career Choice↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Writing and publishing research articles.

The purpose of this article is to assist family medicine researchers in writing organized and concise articles. While the basis of any good article is the quality of the study it describes, the chances of the article being published and communicating results effectively to readers can be improved through effective writing. The IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion) format is used to instruct authors as to the contents of an article. Suggestions for improving the writing and publishing of articles include: outline the article, format the article for submission in the style specified by the journal, obtain reviews from coauthors and colleagues, and use an editor.

Physicians, Family↗