Teaching feedback to first-year medical students: long-term skill retention and accuracy of student self-assessment.
BACKGROUND
Giving and receiving feedback are critical skills and should be taught early in the process of medical education, yet few studies discuss the effect of feedback curricula for first-year medical students.


OBJECTIVE
To study short-term and long-term skills and attitudes of first-year medical students after a multidisciplinary feedback curriculum.


METHODS
Prospective pre- vs. post-course evaluation using mixed-methods data analysis.


METHODS
First-year students at a public university medical school.


METHODS
We collected anonymous student feedback to faculty before, immediately after, and 8 months after the curriculum and classified comments by recommendation (reinforcing/corrective) and specificity (global/specific). Students also self-rated their comfort with and quality of feedback. We assessed changes in comments (skills) and self-rated abilities (attitudes) across the three time points.


RESULTS
Across the three time points, students' evaluation contained more corrective specific comments per evaluation [pre-curriculum mean (SD) 0.48 (0.99); post-curriculum 1.20 (1.7); year-end 0.95 (1.5); p = 0.006]. Students reported increased skill and comfort in giving and receiving feedback and at providing constructive feedback (p < 0.001). However, the number of specific comments on year-end evaluations declined [pre 3.35 (2.0); post 3.49 (2.3); year-end 2.8 (2.1)]; p = 0.008], as did students' self-rated ability to give specific comments.


CONCLUSIONS
Teaching feedback to early medical students resulted in improved skills of delivering corrective specific feedback and enhanced comfort with feedback. However, students' overall ability to deliver specific feedback decreased over time.
Kruidering-Hall
Marieke
M
Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, S-1210D, Box 0450, 513 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143-0450, USA. kruidering@cmp.ucsf.edu
O'Sullivan
Patricia S
PS
Chou
Calvin L
CL
D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D003479:Curriculum / Q000592:standards; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D004521:Educational Measurement / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D030141:Feedback, Psychological; D006801:Humans; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012153:Retention, Psychology; D012647:Self-Assessment; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*