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BACKGROUND: The faculty development community has been challenged to more rigorously assess program impact and move beyond traditional outcomes of knowledge tests and self ratings. PURPOSE: The purpose was to (a) assess our ability to measure supervisors' feedback skills as demonstrated in a clinical setting and (b) compare the results with traditional outcome measures of faculty development interventions. METHODS: A pre-post study design was used. Resident and expert ratings of supervisors' demonstrated feedback skills were compared with traditional outcomes, including a knowledge test and participant self-evaluation. RESULTS: Pre-post knowledge increased significantly (pre = 61%, post = 85%; p < .001) as did participant's self-evaluation scores (pre = 4.13, post = 4.79; p < .001). Participants' self-evaluations were moderately to poorly correlated with resident (pre r = .20, post r = .08) and expert ratings (pre r = .43, post r = -.52). Residents and experts would need to evaluate 110 and 200 participants, respectively, to reach significance. CONCLUSIONS: It is possible to measure feedback skills in a clinical setting. Although traditional outcome measures show a significant effect, demonstrating change in teaching behaviors used in practice will require larger scale studies than typically undertaken currently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Effective education of clinical skills is essential if doctors are to meet the needs of patients with rheumatic disease, but shrinking faculty numbers has made clinical teaching difficult. A solution to this problem is to utilize patient educators. PURPOSE: This study evaluates the teaching effectiveness of patient educators compared to rheumatology faculty using the musculoskeletal (MSK) examination. METHOD: Sixty-two 2nd-year medical students were randomized to receive instruction from patient educators or faculty. Tutorial groups received instructions during three, 3-hr sessions. Clinical skills were evaluated by a 9 station objective structured clinical examination. Students completed a tutor evaluation form to assess their level of satisfaction with the process. RESULTS: Faculty-taught students received a higher overall mark (66.5% vs. 62.1%,) and fewer failed than patient educator-taught students (5 vs. 0, p = 0.02). Students rated faculty educators higher than patient educators (4.13 vs. 3.58 on a 5-point Likert scale). CONCLUSION: Rheumatology faculty appear to be more effective teachers of the MSK physical exam than patient educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]