A Narrative Review of Key Studies in Medical Education in 2022: Applying the Current Literature to Educational Practice and Scholarship.

The expectation of every academic pediatrician is to stay updated on current evidence in their field; this is especially true of pediatric clinician educators who are training the next generation of pediatricians. Since 2016, select members of the Academic Pediatric Association Education Committee have curated educational research articles in order to distill the increasing volume of research related to medical education. The purpose of this narrative review is to summarize 14 articles published in 2022 related to medical education that may impact the work of pediatric clinician educators and educational leadership. These articles are organized into 6 overarching domains: selection and recruitment, promoting learner growth and development, learning environment and wellness, curriculum development, assessment, and educator development.

Card and board game design for medical education: length and complexity considerations.

PURPOSE: There is growing use of games for health professions education. Card and board games are relatively easy to develop, effective for education, supported by educational theory, and generally well accepted by learners; yet, they remain relatively infrequently described in the medical education literature. METHODS: A questionnaire was developed to understand barriers to use of card and board games and to understand user preferences to inform their development. The questionnaire was offered to students and educators downloading a printable antibiotic card game online. RESULTS: The questionnaire was completed by 335 health professionals primarily by physicians, pharmacists, and their trainees. Participants described preferences for shorter games and games with lower complexity. Player counts in the two to four range were the most commonly desired. The most frequently cited barriers were lack of availability in desired subjects, cost, and concerns about content accuracy. CONCLUSION: Educators looking to develop or use serious card and board games should start with shorter, lower-complexity games. Methods to assure and demonstrate content accuracy for educational games should be explored by educators and researchers.

A Narrative Review of Key Studies in Medical Education in 2021: Applying Current Literature to Educational Practice and Scholarship.

To remain at the forefront of clinical practice and pedagogy, pediatric medical educators must stay informed of the latest research. Yet familiarization with the growing body of literature in both pediatrics and medical education is a near-impossible task for the busy medical educator. The purpose of this annotated bibliography is to summarize key manuscripts in medical education published in 2021 that have the potential to significantly influence a pediatric medical educator's practice. Using a 2-staged iterative process, discrete author pairs reviewed 1599 abstracts from 16 medical education and specialty journals. In summary, 16 manuscripts were selected and grouped into the following 6 domains: assessment and feedback, USMLE Step 1 changes, communication, wellness, diversity and inclusion, and professional development. The authors provide abridged summaries and high-yield take-aways from these manuscripts that may impact educational practices in pediatrics. This year, we also provide a 6-year retrospective review of the journals that have had selected articles for this annotated bibliography since inception.

Effect of creative writing on mood in patients with cancer.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the feasibility of conducting creative writing workshops (CWW) for patients with cancer to promote improvement in mood. METHOD: We piloted a prospective study to determine the feasibility of conducting CWW over a 4-week period. Patients were randomised 2:1 to either an intervention arm (IA) or to standard of care (SOC). Patients in the IA attended four 2-hour long weekly CWW × 4 weeks, whereas those receiving SOC did not participate in the CWW. We used a validated emotion thermometer scale (ETS) to assess changes in patient's mental health before and after intervention. Patients with metastatic or unresectable cancer were included. PRIMARY ENDPOINT: (1) Feasibility and (2) mood scores before and after CWW using ETS. RESULTS: A total of 16 patients were enrolled: 11 in the IA vs 5 in SOC. Seven out of 11 (63%) patients enrolled in the IA attended at least 75% of classes. Patients in the IA showed a trend towards mood improvement relative to the SOC when comparing initial and final ETS scores. Within the IA group significantly lower postclass total ETS scores were observed relative to preclass ETS scores. Also, a significant decreasing trend over time was observed in the preclass total ETS scores for participants in the IA group. CONCLUSIONS: It is feasible for patients with cancer to attend CWW. Our results also show a positive effect on mood in the CWW arm. Further prospective clinical studies are needed to evaluate the effect of this intervention in patients with cancer.