title: Using standardized oral examinations to evaluate general competencies.
abstract: Emergency medicine residency programs are required by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) to formally evaluate each resident with oral and written examinations. The Michigan State University Emergency Medicine Residency Program in Lansing conducts monthly standardized oral examinations (SOEs) as part of each resident's evaluation. Recently, the ACGME has advanced six areas, termed "general competencies," that should be acquired during graduate medical education. According to the ACGME, these competencies should be included in the educational process of all residency programs. In promulgating these competencies, the ACGME did not provide examples of core content, strategies for implementation, or methods of evaluation; rather, individual residency programs are required to develop their own methods. The authors describe a modification of an existing SOE strategy that assesses residents' knowledge, skills, experiences, and attitudes as reflected in the general competencies.
authors.affiliation: Michigan State University Emergency Medicine Residency (Sparrow Hospital and Ingham Regional Medical Center) and the Department of Medical Education, Ingham Regional Medical Center, Lansing, MI 48824, USA. hayes@msu.edu
authors.forename: Oliver W
authors.initials: OW
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: Earl J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Reisdorff
authors.forename: Gregory L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Walker
authors.forename: Dale J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Carlson
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Reinoehl
mesh_terms: D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods; D004635:Emergency Medicine / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency