The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology
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Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol · Jun 2004
Medical professionalism and continuing professional development for medical specialists.
The present paper briefly describes a growing trend in continuing professional development (CPD) for medical practitioners, examines some recent published contributions related to professionalism in medicine and describes the theoretical platform of a CPD framework based on medical professionalism that has been developed for use in a variety of medical specialties. The work arises from a project funded by The Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing and conducted by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists on behalf of the Committee of Presidents of Medical Colleges. Overall, the aim of the project was to design and develop a framework that can be considered 'best practice' in the field of medical specialist CPD, and which could be applicable to a wide variety of medical specialties and practice environments. ⋯ Overwhelmingly, the primary purpose of specialists participating in ongoing CPD was, according to the project consultations conducted, the maintenance, development and improvement of skills that enable consumers of healthcare to be confident of the level of care that they receive. Coupled with the need to recognise CPD as contributing to the wider context of professional practice, the resulting framework is underpinned by a theoretical platform based on the concept of medical professionalism. It is this theoretical platform, which articulates the nature of and responsibilities associated with the practice of specialist medicine, that enables a CPD framework to be constructed that can accommodate a wide range of specialist disciplines and practice settings, while also framing ongoing education expectations from the viewpoint of a range of stakeholders, rather than a single perspective; that of practitioners themselves.
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Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol · Apr 2004
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical TrialVeda-scope: More comfortable than the bivalve speculum and cytologically equivalent.
The aim of the present study was to confirm that the Veda-scope is equivalent to the bivalve speculum in the collection of endocervical cells, as confirmation of adequate cervical sampling for Pap smear testing. The study also aimed to assess the comfort level of the Veda-scope compared to the traditional bivalve speculum and the patient preference of the Veda-scope compared to the bivalve speculum. ⋯ The results of the present study show that Pap smear collections with the Veda-scope are of equal quality to those collected with the bivalve speculum, with an equivalent diagnostic outcome. A very strong preference for the Veda-scope was shown by the women enrolled in the present study based on the comfort levels experienced with the two devices.