ABSTRACT
Aims: The aim of this paper is to address whether the introduction of a national licensing exam will improve preparedness for practice. This review will explore and identify the areas in which UK medical graduates are feeling underprepared. In addition, this review will discuss the need for the Medical Licensing Assessment in the UK.Methods: A literature search of several databases was performed in December 2018. Studies which identified the areas in which medical graduates were prepared/unprepared for, and those which explored whether UK medical schools were adequately preparing their graduates for practice, were included. Studies exploring the preparedness of international medical graduates were excluded.Results: Sixteen articles met the final inclusion criteria and are included in this review. All the final studies are cross-sectional and are varied in their use of methods used, with the vast majority using questionnaires to identify the preparedness of medical students and junior doctors.Conclusions: This review conveys that junior doctors are mostly underprepared in emergency work. This can be associated to a lack of exposure to emergency situations during their undergraduate training. Moreover, this review suggests that the preparedness of medical graduates may remain unaffected by the implementation of the MLA.
Subject(s)
Education, Medical, Undergraduate , Students, Medical , Clinical Competence , Cross-Sectional Studies , Humans , Medical Staff, Hospital , Schools, Medical , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a growing public health issue with an increasing burden of disease globally. TBI can lead to significant motor, cognitive and emotional deficits. Mobile health (mHealth) is a promising technology to help diagnose and manage patients with TBI. The aim of this study was to systematically examine and classify available TBI mobile applications (apps) and critically appraise the literature underpinning mHealth for the management of TBI. Two major app markets (Apple and Google Play) were systematically searched. Included apps were classified and had data extracted. Coupled to this, a systematic search of the literature (MEDLINE, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycINFO) was performed examining the effectiveness of mHealth interventions in helping patients manage their symptoms after TBI (registered with PROSPERO: CRD42018107386). From 1296 apps, 53 met our inclusion criteria. The top three functions were TBI screening, education and biomechanics monitoring. Twenty-six apps (49.1%) focused on sports-related concussion. Eight apps (15.1%) were gamified and 12 apps (22.6%) connected to an external device. From the literature, a total of eight articles were included of which four (50%) were case series, two (25%) were feasibility/pilot studies, one (12.5%) was a case report, and one (12.5%) was a randomised controlled trial. The median number of patients was seven (1 - 43). There is a small number of mobile apps for TBI, mostly focusing on sports-related concussion. At present, the uptake and application of these apps as a management aid is limited and the evidence for their usefulness in TBI remains low.
