Military medicine
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Previous studies have shown that medical students experience a great level of burnout and poor well-being during their clinical training periods. In this study, we sought to understand how military medical students cope with stress to prevent burnout and support their well-being. We also investigated if these coping strategies are associated with military medical students' self-reported well-being, burnout, and depression levels. The findings could help inform programming, resources, and educational strategies to better support students to thrive in their careers long term. ⋯ The findings demonstrate that certain coping strategies are more positively associated with a good state of well-being and less burnout, and that utilization of multiple types of coping strategies is more supportive. This study amplifies the voice of military medical students concerning the importance of prioritizing self-care and available resources given the unique pressures and demands of their dual military medical curriculum.
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The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic affected almost every country around the world, and various forms of lockdown or quarantine measures were implemented. The lockdowns forced medical educators to step beyond traditional educational approaches and adopt distance education technologies to maintain continuity in the curriculum. This article presents selected strategies implemented by the Distance Learning Lab (DLL) at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USU), School of Medicine (SOM), in transitioning their instruction to an emergency distance education format during the COVID-19 pandemic. ⋯ Post-pandemic, the potential to use distance education remains. It is important to have support units that recognize and cater to the singular needs of medical faculty members and students as they continue to use distance technologies to facilitate student learning.
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Developing physicians as leaders has gained attention across the United States. Undergraduate medical education (UME) and graduate medical education (GME) leader development programs have increased. During postgraduate years (PGY), graduates bring their leadership education to the bedside; however, associations between leader performance in medical school and GME is largely unknown. It is important to find experiences that can assess leader performance that may be useful to predict future performance. The purpose of this study was to determine if (1) there is a correlation between leader performance during the fourth year of medical school versus leader performance in PGY1 and 3, and (2) leader performance during the fourth year of medical school is associated with military leadership performance in PGY1 and 3s while taking previous academic performance markers into account. ⋯ The findings of this study indicate that a positive relationship exists between leader performance at the end of medical school and leader performance in PGY1 and 3 years of residency. These correlations were stronger in PGY3 compared to PGY1. During PGY1, learners may be more focused on being a physician and an effective team member compared to PGY3 where they have a deeper understanding of their roles and responsibilities and can take on more leadership roles. Additionally, this study also found that MCAT and USMLE Step exams performance was not predictive of PGY1 or PGY3 leader performance. These findings provide evidence of the power of continued leader development in UME and beyond.
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To determine whether medical school curricular change impacted the assessment of graduates in their first year of postgraduate training. ⋯ Ratings by PGY-1 program directors of USU graduates over time demonstrated a very small decline soon after curriculum reform but later showed a large improvement in domains reflecting areas of emphasis in the curriculum. In the eyes of a key stakeholder, the USU curriculum reform did no harm and led to improved PGY-1 assessments.
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Well-being concerns among medical students are more prevalent than their age-matched peers in the United States. It remains unknown, however, if individual differences in well-being exist among U.S. medical students serving in the military. In this study, we sought to identify profiles (i.e., subgroups) of well-being in military medical students and examine the associations between these well-being profiles and burnout, depression, and intended retention in military and medical fields. ⋯ These subgroups may be clinically important as burnout, depression, and intention to leave medical field and/or military service occurred with varying likelihoods among medical students across the different well-being subgroups. Military medical institutions may consider improving recruitment tools to identify the best alignment between students' career goals and the military setting. Besides, it is crucial for the institution to address diversity, equity, and inclusion issues that may lead to alienation, anxiety, and a sense of wanting to leave the military community.