Abstract

Medical science educators are faculty members primarily responsible for teaching the medical sciences to healthcare profession students. These educators also have roles in other academic areas such as curriculum development, learner assessment, advising and mentoring, clinical duties, research, institutional service, leadership and administration. Academic institutions worldwide are increasingly focused on excelling in cutting-edge research, a major criterion for university rankings, which has led to significant resources and attention invested in those endeavours. At the same time, the primary goal of academic institutions is to educate and train healthcare professionals. As a result, medical science educators are often caught in the middle of these competing interests, leading to the ambiguity between personal career development and institutional priorities. It is in this context that we consider how medical science educators might navigate these issues and how academic institutions can support and strengthen this important cohort of faculty. First, with an attempt at humour, we begin by considering three stereotypical identities of medical science educators. We then discuss how the growing number of medical education associations and programs designed to support medical science educators are making a difference. Our goal is to provide a clear direction for the current career trajectory of medical science educators.

Keywords:        Recognition, Promotion, Innovation and Leadership in Education, Teaching Academy

Abstract

Southeast Asian region has been experiencing significant challenges to their health care systems, driving some countries establishing policies to ensure the quality of the medical workforce through the introduction of national licensing examinations. This paper examines the experiences of Southeast Asian countries in implementing licensing examinations, highlighting the changes and development of the education policy and its impact on medical education. The lesson learnt from the high-stakes assessment policy offers a new perspective on how medical licensing examinations could represent a potential regional approach for a better health care.

Abstract

The expansion of biomedical sciences has seen a recent boom in the number of graduate students and early career scientists. However, the lack of motivation and increasing departure of graduates from research careers were not well explained in current literature. Elements such as intrinsic motivation and external factors may play moderating or independent roles in altering these outcomes. Using semi-structured interviews, we sought to investigate the role of intrinsic motivation and external factors in shaping biomedical sciences graduate students’ and early career biomedical scientists’ research experiences, and the impact on their perceived research performance and expected career longevity. Using thematic analysis, our data from 10 graduate students or early biomedical scientists participants from uncover several aspects of intrinsic motivation such as its intensity, foundation and nature, and specific external factors such as the presence or absence of social support, the need for career progression driven by societal pressure, and the nature of the research environment that could all influence the students’ and trainees’ psychological state of mind. In turn, this could impact their perceived research performance ability, and desire to stay or leave the biomedical research field. Our study provided an in-depth perspective into the underlying reasons for leaving biomedical sciences or the lack of ‘feel-good’ in research besides competition, funding and publications. This could lead to further discussions on policy changes and interventions that could improve biomedical sciences graduate education and training in future.

Keywords:        Intrinsic Motivation, External Factors, Research Performance, Career Sustainability

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Abstract

This study measures the impact of the implementation of a dedicated research semester on various perceived competencies related to research. In 2016, surveys were conducted on final undergraduate Pharmacy students in regard to appraisal and critical thinking skills. Students’ perceptions of the impact of research in enhancing their employment potential were investigated. Our evaluation included students’ self-assessment of their writing, presentation, critical thinking and research skills. To assess qualitative parameters, the data obtained were analysed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. A total of 113 responses was received. A majority of students indicated that the research semester prepared them in undertaking their research projects. They acknowledged that research helped in building confidence and to acquire the ability to work independently. Most students perceived that the experience gained in research would enhance their employment potential. Overall, students developed critical thinking skills through their respective research project.

Abstract

Introduction: Clinical reasoning is the cognitive process of weighing clinical information together with past experience to evaluate diagnostic and management dilemmas. There is a paucity of literature regarding predictors of clinical reasoning at the postgraduate level. We performed a retrospective study on internal medicine residents to determine the sociodemographic and experiential correlates of clinical reasoning in neurological localisation, measured using validated tests.

Methods: We recruited 162 internal medicine residents undergoing a three-month attachment in neurology at the National Neuroscience Institute, Singapore, over a 2.5 year period. Clinical reasoning was assessed on the second month of their attachment via two validated tests of neurological localisation–Extended Matching Questions (EMQ) and Script Concordance Test (SCT). Data on gender, undergraduate medical education (local vs overseas graduates), graduate medical education, and amount of clinical experience were collected, and their association with EMQ and SCT scores evaluated via multivariate analysis.

Results: Multivariate analysis indicated that local graduates scored higher than overseas graduates in the SCT (adjusted R² = 0.101, f² = 0.112). Being a local graduate and having more local experience positively predicted EMQ scores (adjusted R² = 0.049, f² = 0.112).

Conclusion: Clinical reasoning in neurological localisation can be predicted via a two-factor model–undergraduate medical education and the amount of local experience. Context specificity likely underpins the process.

Keywords:           Clinical Reasoning, Context Specificity, Extended Matching Questions, Neurological Localization, Script Concordance Test

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In order to understand what constitutes unprofessional online behaviour from the perspectives of stakeholders, there have been studies that examine the perceptions of doctors and the public on hypothetical online postings. However, the considerations and reasoning of the participants when they evaluate online posts have not been explored in-depth. This project aimed to examine the main considerations and possible conflicting considerations of faculty and residents when they evaluate the appropriateness of Facebook posts, and how they might negotiate any conflicts. Faculty and residents from the National Healthcare Group – Alexandra Health Pte Ltd Residency in Singapore were randomly presented Facebooks posts as part of an online questionnaire, rated their appropriateness, and provided explanations for their ratings. Responses were coded for main considerations and responses with 2 or more conflicting considerations were further analysed to describe the conflict and the way they were negotiated. 182 faculty and residents rated the appropriateness of three out of six Facebook posts and explained their evaluation. Except for one post which was evaluated as ‘Neither appropriate nor inappropriate’ by the majority (37%) of the respondents, all other posts were rated as either ‘Very inappropriate’ or ‘Inappropriate’ by the majority of respondents (34%-69%). Despite similar evaluation of inappropriateness, faculty and residents take into account a wide range of considerations. These considerations tend to conflict with one another when the respondents considered freedom of expression of the poster and the educational purpose of a post. Understanding physicians’ negotiation of conflicting considerations provides insight into their outworking of professionalism in social media context.

Keywords:           Professionalism, Social Media, Postgraduate Education

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Dear Editor,

I read with great interest your editorial “Grit in healthcare education and practice” published on The Asia Pacific Scholar (Dujeepa & Gwee, 2020). I agree that grit is an important trait to develop in healthcare, especially for patient care. In addition to focusing on grit at the institutional level, we could look at it on an individual level. The question henceforth is that–How do we develop or strengthen the grit in ourselves? Angela Duckworth proposed 5 ways to develop grit–pursue what interests you; practice; find purpose; have hope; and join a gritty group (Barker, 2016).  Personally, I feel that finding purpose plays a large role in developing passion and perseverance.