A qualitative study of constructive clinical learning experiences.

Full Abstract

Little is known about the effectiveness of clinical education. A more educational structure is considered to be potentially beneficial. The following structured components were added to a surgical clerkship:
logbooks, an observed student-patient encounter, individual appraisals, feedback on patient notes, and (case) presentations by students. The authors organized two focus-group sessions in which 19 students participated to explore their perceptions about effective clinical learning experiences and the newly introduced structured components. The analysis of the transcripts showed that observation and constructive feedback are key features of clinical training. The structured activities were appreciated and the results show the direction to be taken for further improvement. Learning experiences depended vastly on individual clinicians' educational qualities. Students experienced being on call, assisting in theatre and time for self-study as instructive elements. Recommended clerkship components are:
active involvement of students, direct observation, selection of teachers, a positive learning environment and time for self-study.

Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills

Author information

Author/s: van der Hem-Stokroos, H H (HH); Daelmans, H E M (HE); van der Vleuten, C P M (CP); Haarman, H J Th M (HJ); Scherpbier, A J J A (AJ);

Affiliation: Department of Surgery, Vrije Universiteit Medical Centre, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. hh.vdhem(-atsign-)VUmc.nl

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: Medical teacher (Med Teach), published in England. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2003-Mar; vol 25 (issue 2) : pp 120-6

Dates: Created 2003/05/14; Completed 2003/09/04; Revised 2004/11/17;

PMID: 12745517, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Humans
Learning
Surgery - education

This article has not been indexed for related articles as yet, however you can still use the live related article search links below.

See 100+ related articles.