Ten years ago the results of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) minitest suggested that there would be little change in total basic science examination performance between the second and fourth year of medical school. Five projects are reported that sustain these results. (Author/JMD)

First-year dental students from three schools were surveyed to assess their concern about psychosocial, academic, time, isolation, and money issues. Similarity in ranking of concerns, and differences in intensity of concern are examined for implications for research in stress management. (MSE)

A method for selecting which procedural skills should be mastered by medicine residents is described. Residents and faculty at the University of Nebraska College of Medicine were asked to select from a list skills essential to completing the three-year general internal medicine residency. (Author/MLW)

Examined the attitudes and knowledge of 283 dental and medical students at different stages in their professional education. No significant deterioration or improvement in attitudes toward the aged was found in the course of medical and dental education. Correlational analysis revealed a complex relationship between knowledge and attitude scores.…

Despite increases in the number of women medical students, feelings of loneliness may continue to exist more among female than male students. The feelings of isolation with regard to the students' perceptions of the medical school environment, the local community, and the potential value of student support services are examined. (Author/MLW)

An introductory preclinical course in family medicine developed at Duke University is described. Student response to the course indicates that it had a positive effect upon student attitudes toward the important health care issues encountered in family practice. (JMD)

Results of a survey are reported that sought to obtain information on the attitudes of psychiatric residents towards research, their backgrounds in research training, their assessment of their departments and their own personal research activities, and the role of psychiatric research in their future careers. (JMD)

A program devoted to discussion of a patient and the patient's problems, given to incoming medical students at the State University of New York at Buffalo as part of a three-day orientation, is described. The exercise gives the student immediate exposure to medical-school-level information. (Author/MLW)

Early admission students performed as well as first-year medical students in the preclinical sciences. They integrated, rather than alternated, undergraduate and medical coursework. Double or inter-departmental majors were common; few general education or non-major courses were chosen. (CP)

Tracking of graduates is seen as providing a more accurate method of predicting physician output than enumeration of first-year residents. A tracking study by the National Resident Matching Program, which is described, is an effort by NRMP to provide current information to those it serves. (Author/MLW)

A study designed to assess knowledge of biostatistics and epidemiology relevant to medical literature and administered to internists and medical house staff at a teaching hospital is assessed. The results of the study suggest that knowledge of basic biostatistics and of study design is important for reading medical literature. (Author/MLW)

A study that investigated the long-term use of instructional objectives by medical students taking basic science and clinical courses is reported. Focus is on the extent and manner in which the objectives were used and factors that influenced their use. Students reported heavier usage earlier in the curriculum. (Author/JMD)

A study of the impact of two methods of pelvic examination instruction on student performance and anxiety revealed no significant difference between the group that used professional patients and the control group that used clinic patients. However, a second anxiety instrument did reveal differences, and the instructional costs for the control…

A longitudinal study of personality traits of medical students was first administered to freshmen and then later to the same students during their junior year. The results suggest that over the two years a developmental shift away from motivations focusing on effort and control toward those focusing on self-gratification took place. Implications…

Three university leaders--Timothy Healy, Matthew Francis McNulty, Jr., and John Bernard Henry of Georgetown University--offer their perspectives on increasing costs, financial support, quality of education, curriculum needs, employment market, physician compensation, and medical careers. (MSE)