P3.J190: Focus on practical skills during orientation improves medical students’ perceived preparedness and confidence during pediatric rotation

Background: There is a paucity of medical education literature describing the orientation practices for medical students even though orientation is often a significant part of the medical school curriculum.

Studies of medical students matriculating into surgical internships have found that a targeted, 2-week surgical boot camp curriculum prior to matriculation can improve student confidence in technical skills and knowledge2. However, there are no studies to evaluate the effect of early introduction of practical skills as medical students are transitioning to their clinical rotations.

Through this study, we want to assess and evaluate medical student perception of personal abilities before and after a 4-hour pediatric inpatient orientation that focused on practical clinical skills such as presenting during family-centered rounds, using the electronic medical record, evaluating intake and output in a pediatric patient, observing key physical exam findings through observation skills, and performing a newborn physical exam. After they have completed their inpatient pediatric rotation, we measured the students’ perceived preparedness as a marker of their confidence level.

Methods: Prior to and after orientation, students rank their perceived abilities to complete specific skills based on a modified Likert scale. After their inpatient pediatric rotation, students rank their own preparedness on these same skills sets. Likert type survey items were analyzed individually using Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests to compare the change in values pre orientation to post orientation. Post-immersion responses were dichotomized into lower level of preparedness vs higher level of preparedness.

Results: Out of 48 participants, 37 had responses to pre- and post-surveys (table 1). More students experienced a positive change in their confidence levels pre to post than a negative change which indicated there was significant gain in confidence in all items after orientation (all p-values < 0.001, Table 1). Of the 35 who had completed a post-rotation survey, 77.1%-85.7% reported being moderately or well prepared for each skill set (Table 2).

Conclusion: There are no current published studies that evaluate the effect of early introduction of practical skills on student confidence as medical students transitioning to their clinical rotations. Through this study, we assessed medical student perception of personal abilities before and after orientation for their pediatric inpatient rotation, and we measure their perceived preparedness after they have completed their rotation as a marker of their confidence level. As a result of this study, we highlighted the importance of empowering medical students through hands-on, practical sessions during orientation session.