The way that residents in internal medicine allotted their time during patient management rounds was determined. House staff teams were observed for four days, and the time spent on all activities was recorded. The study suggests that medical educators should be concerned about the thoroughness of house staff work rounds. (Author/MLW)

A project that attempts to overcome the principal obstacles and to provide an efficient and effective method of teaching information retrieval skills to second-year medical students is described. The method includes a pretest, a diagnosis of deficiencies in information skills, a self-paced learning module, and a posttest. (Author/MLW)

The increase in the proportion of women students in U.S. medical schools was examined. Regional differences in the proportion of women in entering classes was noted and these differences are described and possible reasons for them are speculated. (MLW)

Examined marital family therapy training in medical education. Subjects were graduating medical students entering psychiatry, who rated the adequacy of their exposure in medical school to a variety of mental health interventions. Fewer than one-third of the respondents believed they received adequate exposure to marital and family therapy. (KS)

The effectiveness of a teaching skills program for residents at Louisiana State University Medical Center was evaluated among 22 residents in obstetrics and gynecology, medicine, and family medicine who were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. There was greater increase in the scores of the experimental than the control groups.…

Second-year medical students (N=187) evaluated their own videotaped performances during physical assessment examinations. Peers and expert evaluators also rated the performances. Significant differences emerged across types of raters. Results show that these students do not accurately assess their own or peers' skills performances. (TJH)

The relationships between academic achievement in medical school and performance in first-year residency was investigated. Residents rated as "outstanding" consistently performed better on the National Board of Medical Examiners' examinations than those rated as "below average." Results support the consideration of academic…

It is anticipated that after a conference on "Teachers as Role Models" at Indiana University School of Medicine, the participants would be more cognizant of their influence as role models and would be motivated to become better role models and support good role modeling. (Author/MLW)

A study of internal medicine residents' attitudes toward specific older patients' health status, adjustment to medical care, and expected benefits of health education activities found that residents' attitudes correlated with their satisfaction and that patients tended to express greater satisfaction than residents. (Author/MSE)

Preventive health practices known to benefit the general public include aerobic exercise, seat belt use, and self-examination for breast or testicular cancer. To assess whether residents would increase their promotion of these healthful behaviors, a controlled trial was conducted at the University of Missouri--Columbia Hospitals and Clinics.…

The medical pharmacology course at the University of Arkansas College of Medicine has changed from a poorly attended course in which students depended on "canned notes" and had bad rapport with faculty members to a course in which attendance is high and the canned-notes system has been abandoned. (Author/MLW)

An institution-wide program for residents impaired by alcohol, drugs, or emotional problems at the Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals is described. The goal of the program was to help impaired house staff to continue their training in a nonpunitive environment. (Author/MLW)

The continuity of health care includes three elements: cognitive, management, and relationship. Exploration of each expands the understanding of continuity in medical practice. Continuity of care can be evaluated in both undergraduate and residency programs by the application of the criteria offered. (Author/MLW)

The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine served as one of the cooperating pilot schools in the Association of American Medical Colleges Clinical Evaluation Program. The completion of self-study materials helped the faculty to provide descriptions of the structure of the clerkships and of the evaluation system. (MLW)

Scores based on the number of correct answers were compared with scores based on dangerous responses to items in the same multiple choice test developed by American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery. Results showed construct validity for both sets of scores. However, both scores were redundant when evaluated by correlation coefficient. (Author/JAZ)