TY - JOUR
T1 - Improving Surgical Residents' Performance on Written Assessments of Cultural Competency
AU - Krajewski, Aleksandra
AU - Rader, Christine
AU - Voytovich, Anthony
AU - Longo, Walter E.
AU - Kozol, Robert A.
AU - Chandawarkar, Rajiv Y.
PY - 2008/7
Y1 - 2008/7
N2 - Context: The pressure to implement cultural-competency training at the level of GME is high. The rapidly diversifying American population and the ACGME demand it, and cultural competency is recognized as a core competency under "Professionalism.". Objectives: The objectives for this study were (1) to assess residents' baseline levels of cultural competence, (2) define barriers to skill-acquisition, and (3) examine efficacy of educational programs in improving cultural competence. Setting & Participants: In all, 43 residents from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine participated in a prospective, Institutional Review Board (IRB)-approved study. Design: During Step 1 (pretest), baseline performance was recorded using 3 assessments: (1) Healthcare Cultural Competency Test (HCCT), (2) Cultural skills acquisition (CSA), and (3) Clinical Scenarios Test (CSE). During Step 2 (Educational Intervention), a 2-part lecture that focused on principles of cultural competency and continued self-learning was presented. Last, for Step 3 (posttest), the post-program evaluation was administered as in Step 1. Main Outcome Measures: Answers for Step 1 (pretest) and Step 3 (posttest) were compared using a paired t-test for HCCT and CSE and the chi-square test for CSA. Results: Thirty-five replies were evaluated. Every resident performed better on the posttest than the pretest. Specifically, participants showed 88% improvement in their scores on the HCCT (pretest: 360, posttest: 696; p < 0.01), 2-fold improvement on the CSA (pretest: 6, posttest: 12; p < 0.009), and 40% improvement in CSE (pretest mean score = 23.3, posttest = 34.6; p < 0.01). Commonly identified barriers to learning included inadequate teaching tools and absence of formal training. Conclusions: Surgery residents tested for 3 aspects of cultural competence prior to and after teaching sessions showed marked improvement on all 3 assessment measures after this brief intervention.
AB - Context: The pressure to implement cultural-competency training at the level of GME is high. The rapidly diversifying American population and the ACGME demand it, and cultural competency is recognized as a core competency under "Professionalism.". Objectives: The objectives for this study were (1) to assess residents' baseline levels of cultural competence, (2) define barriers to skill-acquisition, and (3) examine efficacy of educational programs in improving cultural competence. Setting & Participants: In all, 43 residents from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine participated in a prospective, Institutional Review Board (IRB)-approved study. Design: During Step 1 (pretest), baseline performance was recorded using 3 assessments: (1) Healthcare Cultural Competency Test (HCCT), (2) Cultural skills acquisition (CSA), and (3) Clinical Scenarios Test (CSE). During Step 2 (Educational Intervention), a 2-part lecture that focused on principles of cultural competency and continued self-learning was presented. Last, for Step 3 (posttest), the post-program evaluation was administered as in Step 1. Main Outcome Measures: Answers for Step 1 (pretest) and Step 3 (posttest) were compared using a paired t-test for HCCT and CSE and the chi-square test for CSA. Results: Thirty-five replies were evaluated. Every resident performed better on the posttest than the pretest. Specifically, participants showed 88% improvement in their scores on the HCCT (pretest: 360, posttest: 696; p < 0.01), 2-fold improvement on the CSA (pretest: 6, posttest: 12; p < 0.009), and 40% improvement in CSE (pretest mean score = 23.3, posttest = 34.6; p < 0.01). Commonly identified barriers to learning included inadequate teaching tools and absence of formal training. Conclusions: Surgery residents tested for 3 aspects of cultural competence prior to and after teaching sessions showed marked improvement on all 3 assessment measures after this brief intervention.
KW - ACGME Outcomes Project
KW - cultural competency
KW - Interpersonal & Communication Skills
KW - Patient Care
KW - Professionalism
KW - transcultural health care
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jsurg.2008.05.004
DO - 10.1016/j.jsurg.2008.05.004
M3 - Article
C2 - 18707658
AN - SCOPUS:49049101126
VL - 65
SP - 263
EP - 269
JO - Journal of Surgical Education
JF - Journal of Surgical Education
SN - 1931-7204
IS - 4
ER -