ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Differential diagnosis (DDx) is a core clinical reasoning skill that all medical students and physicians must acquire and develop. Metamemory techniques (MMTs), including mnemonic devices and other heuristics, are frequently taught to students as a means of enhancing DDx generation. The Heart is A House (HIAH), an MMT that works by prompting students to think about cardiac disease in terms of four structural subsystems, can be used to facilitate the generation of cardiac differentials, but its efficacy has not been studied. METHODS: In a 3-hour DDx workshop, second-year medical students were given a brief case vignette of a patient with chest pain and dyspnea and asked to generate initial differential diagnoses before and after learning HIAH. Descriptive statistics and paired T-tests were used to compare the sizes of cardiac-only and total differentials pre-/post-HIAH. Cardiac diagnoses were classified according to the structural categories described by HIAH, and Simpson's Diversity Index (SDI) was used to evaluate the effect of HIAH on the variety of cardiac diagnoses produced. RESULTS: All students in the course (N = 111) submitted pre-post differential lists. The mean number of diagnoses included in their differentials did not change significantly after exposure to HIAH (7.98 vs. 8.71, P = .09). However, the number of potentially correct cardiac diagnoses increased from 1.79 to 4.75 (P < .0001), and the variety of structure/function cardiac categories considered by students increased more than twofold (from an SDI of 0.16 to 0.4, P < .0001). These increases were accompanied by a small increase in incorrect diagnoses ( + 2.47%, P = .0003) and a larger decrease in potentially correct noncardiac diagnoses (-41.88%, P < .0001). CONCLUSION: The use of HIAH was associated with an increase in the size and variety of cardiac differentials. This increase may have come at the cost of a reduced noncardiac differential. Educators may find HIAH useful for guiding students as they reason through cases involving potential cardiac etiologies. As with all heuristics, care must be exercised to avoid introducing unwanted bias.
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Although fibromyalgia is one of the most common and clinically important rheumatologic entities, physicians frequently report that their training fails to prepare them to manage this disease. Many medical schools devote insufficient time and attention to the subject of fibromyalgia, resulting in training gaps that can manifest as failures of both knowledge and empathy. There is a need for evidence-based, time-efficient methods for teaching this important subject. We have developed a narrative-driven video presentation for clerkship students and sought to evaluate its impact on fibromyalgia-related knowledge and attitudes. METHODS: Fibromyalgia: A Patient's Perspective (FPP), a 13-minute video, was presented to third-year medical students (N = 54). Surveys of knowledge and attitudes were collected before and after the video. Composite scores, as well as Knowledge and Attitudes subscales, were computed, and paired t tests were used to compare pre/post means for these scales, as well as for individual questions. Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to identify correlations between survey scores and student sex and specialty of interest. RESULTS: Between pre-experience and post-experience surveys, there were statistically significant differences for 11 of 15 questions (73%). The composite score increased from 3.8 (SD = 0.44) to 4.2 (SD = 0.47) (P < .0001). Knowledge and Attitude subscale scores also increased, from 4.0 (SD = 0.5) to 4.38 (SD = 0.5) (P < .0001) and 3.6 (SD = 0.5) to 3.93 (SD = 0.5) (P < .0001), respectively. Students reported favorable impressions of the video, with 87% agreeing that the video was helpful to learners and 79% disagreeing that a lecture would be preferable to the video. No differences in scores by sex or intended specialty were observed. CONCLUSION: The FPP video demonstrates promise as a tool for enhancing both knowledge of and positive, empathic attitudes toward fibromyalgia in medical learners. It may serve as a useful resource for educators looking to further develop their clinical pain management curricula.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Under Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program rules, Ohio physicians that recommend medical marijuana (MMJ) to patients must possess a Certificate to Recommend (CTR) from the State Medical Board. Although a pre-program state survey indicated that more than a quarter of Ohio physicians were likely to recommend MMJ, only 473 physicians obtained CTRs in the first year of the program, amounting to just 1.39% of the physician workforce. The purpose of this study is to evaluate demographic factors that influence a physician's decision to obtain the CTR. METHOD: Using physician demographic data extracted from Ohio's databases of medical licensees and CTR holders, as well as the American Medical Association Physician Masterfile, prevalence ratios for CTR holders were calculated for specialty, medical degree (Doctor of Medicine, MD, vs. Doctor of Osteopathy, DO), age and gender. A multivariate model was implemented to generate adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) reflecting the independent effects of specialty, degree, and age. To assess temporal variations in CTR acquisition, per-specialty CTR counts were also plotted as a function of program month. RESULTS: The best-represented specialties among CTR holders were Family Medicine (29.11%), Internal Medicine and its subspecialties (22.57%), and Anesthesiology (9.07%). Expressed as an adjusted per-specialty prevalence ratio in reference to Family Medicine, the dominant specialty was Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (aPR 2.08, 95% CI 1.34-3.24), with the lowest measurable prevalence ratios found in Pediatrics (aPR 0.17, 95% CI 0.10-0.30) and Surgery (aPR 0.33, 95% CI 0.22-0.50). DOs were more likely to obtain CTRs than MDs (aPR 1.72, 95% CI 1.39-2.15). The mean age of CTR holders was 54.03 +/- 11.43, vs. 51.13 +/- 13.38 for non-CTR holders (p < .0001). Although gender could not be included in the multivariate model, males were more likely than females to obtain a CTR (PR 1.54, 95%CI 1.26-1.89). A plot of per-month CTR acquisition by specialty demonstrated a fairly consistent specialty distribution of CTRs in the first year, as well as variations in overall CTR acquisition that may correspond to program-operational events. CONCLUSION: Specialty, type of medical degree, and age all correlate independently with the likelihood of registering to recommend medical marijuana in Ohio. Specialty distribution of CTRs remained fairly consistent in the program's first year, although overall CTR acquisition may be sensitive to program-operational events such as delays in dispensary opening or product availability.
