Journal of general internal medicine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
A randomized trial of teaching clinical skills using virtual and live standardized patients.
We developed computer-based virtual patient (VP) cases to complement an interactive continuing medical education (CME) course that emphasizes skills practice using standardized patients (SP). Virtual patient simulations have the significant advantages of requiring fewer personnel and resources, being accessible at any time, and being highly standardized. Little is known about the educational effectiveness of these new resources. We conducted a randomized trial to assess the educational effectiveness of VPs and SPs in teaching clinical skills. ⋯ Improvements in performance and diagnostic ability were equivalent between the groups and participants rated VP and SP cases equally. Including well-designed VPs has a potentially powerful and efficient place in clinical skills training for practicing health care workers.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Brief report: Training internists in shared decision making about chronic opioid treatment for noncancer pain.
The use of chronic opioids for noncancer pain is an increasingly common and difficult problem in primary care. ⋯ Training primary care physicians in the shared decision-making model improves physician satisfaction in caring for patients with chronic pain and promotes the use of patient treatment agreements. Further research is necessary to determine whether this training improves patient satisfaction and outcomes.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Promoting use of colorectal cancer screening tests. Can we change physician behavior?
Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening is underutilized despite evidence that screening reduces mortality. ⋯ With the exception of an increase in rates of SIG in the intervention group, the intervention had no effect on rates of CRC screening. Future interventions should assess innovative approaches to increase rates of CRC screening.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Respiratory symptom relief related to reduction in cigarette use.
Many smokers reduce their cigarette consumption during failed attempts to quit. We report the impact of changes in consumption on smoking-related respiratory symptom severity (SRRSS). ⋯ Reduction in symptom severity increases as absolute reduction in daily smoking increases. This is the first study to demonstrate an association between subjective short-term health changes and reduction in smoking.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A randomized-controlled study of encounter cards to improve oral case presentation skills of medical students.
To determine the feasibility of oral case presentation (OCP) encounter cards as a tool for formative evaluation, to estimate the reliability and validity of the ratings when used in a medicine clerkship, and to examine whether the use of OCP encounter cards improves students' OCP skills. ⋯ OCP encounter cards are a novel and feasible tool to assess clerkship students' oral case presentation skills. OCP card ratings are reproducible, and validity is suggested by their correlation with multiple markers of performance. However, encounter cards did not improve performance on summative oral presentations.