Browsing by Author "Brokaw, James"

Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Building Faculty Learning Communities for Medical Education Scholarship in a Multi-Campus System: Four Years of Experience
    (2024-04) Kochhar, Komal; Longtin, Krista; Wilson, Shawn; Ho, Monling; Brokaw, James; Hobson, Tara; Wallach, Paul
    The Indiana University School of Medicine employs a large geographically distributed system of medical education composed of 8 regional medical campuses and the main medical campus in Indianapolis. An inherent challenge is being able to provide relevant faculty development opportunities across the state. Beginning Fall of 2019, we implemented Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) specifically designed to develop faculty competence in medical education research. Each FLC team consisted of 4-6 medical educators engaged in a collaborative educational research project led by an experienced faculty mentor. In addition to the group work, participants were expected to attend a series of monthly seminars to build foundational skills in educational research. To date, 69 medical educators (both preclinical/clinical) have participated in 13 FLC teams. To assess participant satisfaction, surveys were administered at the mid-point and end of each FLC team’s term (68% cumulative response rate). By the end of their term, approximately half of the participants had submitted their work for publication or presentation. A successful FLC program requires strong administrative oversight and organization but can easily be replicated elsewhere.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Embryology in medical education: a mixed methods study and phenomenology of faculty and first year medical students
    (2016-06) Cassidy, Keely Marie; O'Loughlin, Valerie Dean; Brokaw, James; Flinders, David; Husmann, Polly; Kearns, Katherine
    The anatomical sciences are experiencing a notable decrease in the time and resources devoted to embryology in North American medical education. With more changes assured, it is necessary to investigate the current trends in curriculum, pedagogy, and related experiences of embryology teachers and learners. To address these concerns, the researcher developed two online mixed methods surveys: one for current anatomy and embryology faculty and another for first year medical students. The faculty survey was followed by interviews with volunteers from that cohort. The researcher used a grounded theory methodology to analyze the qualitative components of the surveys, and descriptive statistics to analyze the quantitative components of the surveys. Both the faculty and student surveys illuminated the vast differences between the explicit, implicit, and null curricular components found in the numerous medical education programs represented. A combined grounded theory methodology and phenomenological approach was used to analyze the interviews with faculty. This generated a lived experience narrative of the phenomenon of teaching embryological content to medical students in the modern world, which led to a better understanding of the needs and challenges that face this subject matter and those who teach it. In this fluid era of medical education reform and integration, the perceptions and experiences of anatomy and embryology faculty and first year medical students are invaluable to assessing the curriculum and pedagogy of this foundational anatomical science and formulating evidence-based recommendations for the future.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Faculty Learning Communities: A Collaborative Model for Professional Development of Medical Educators in our Multi-Campus System, 2019 to Present
    (2024) Kochhar, Komal; Longtin, Krista; WIlson, Shawn; Ho, Monling; Hobson, Tara; Holley, Matthew; Brokaw, James; Wallach, Paul
    Background The Indiana University School of Medicine employs a large geographically distributed system of medical education composed of 8 regional medical campuses and the main medical campus in Indianapolis. Medical educators need targeted faculty development programs to give them the skills necessary to produce educational scholarship for promotion and tenure. An inherent challenge of operating such a large multi-campus system is being able to provide relevant professional development opportunities for all our medical educators across the state. Objective To provide relevant professional development opportunities for all medical education faculty across our large multi-campus system statewide. Methods Beginning the Fall of 2019, we implemented Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) specifically designed to develop faculty competence in medical education research. All medical school faculty across our statewide system were eligible to participate. Each FLC team consisted of 4-6 medical educators engaged in a collaborative educational research project led by an experienced faculty mentor. The FLC teams met monthly via Zoom over a 2-year term to establish priorities, share ideas, distribute the workload, and produce the scholarly product(s). In addition to the group work, participants were expected to attend a series of monthly webinars to build foundational skills in educational research. Results To date, 63 medical educators (both preclinical/clinical) have participated in 13 FLC teams. To assess participant satisfaction, surveys were administered at the mid-point and at the end of each FLC team’s term (68% cumulative response rate). Averaged across all teams, a majority of respondents:  Rated their FLC experience as “Good” to “Excellent” (81%)  “Strongly agreed” or “agreed” that the FLC process met their professional development needs (73%)  Were interested in participating in future FLC teams (65%) By the end of their term, about one-half of the participants had submitted their work for publication or presentation. Conclusion By participating in FLCs, medical educators from the regional campuses and main campus were able to effectively collaborate on projects of mutual interest. In our experience, FLCs provide a cost-effective and sustainable model for developing medical educators. Although lack of protected time may be an impediment for clinician participation, this can be partially mitigated by requiring the clinical chair’s approval before joining an FLC team.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The Impact of Medical Education Reform on the Teaching and Learning of the Anatomical Sciences
    (2019-06) Taylor, Melissa Anne; O'Laughlin, Valerie Dean; Brokaw, James; Husmann, Polly; Lester, Jessica
    Curricular reform in medical education is a process that has been ongoing for quite some time. Major revision of medical curricula has been occurring since the early eighteenth century. In recent decades, curricular reform has had a monumental impact on the anatomical science subjects. This research investigated how specifically the anatomical science disciplines were impacted by curricular reform at various allopathic medical schools within the United States. The goal of this research was to discover curricular variations in medical schools and to examine the perceptions of those curricular programs by faculty and students alike. Four research questions were addressed to explore the role of curricular reform in medical education using a mixed methods study design. Medical curricular websites were qualitatively analyzed to discover common trends used to describe medical curricula and content organization. Perceptions about the medical curriculum were gathered through surveys and interviews of anatomical science faculty across the country and first year medical students at Indiana University School of Medicine-Bloomington. Finally, a case study of curricular changes at Indiana University School of Medicine was documented. Results from this research demonstrated that curricular reform has had a major impact on the anatomical disciplines. Didactic lectures have been supplemented or replaced by non-didactic teaching tools. Hours dedicated to the teaching of the anatomical sciences have greatly decreased, and most anatomical disciplines are no longer taught as stand-alone courses. Qualitative results discovered that there is an overall administrative control of the medical curriculum. Additional perceptual data demonstrated the need for measuring student success past the licensing exam scores. There’s a need for future studies to further analyze student success regarding lifelong learning, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Implementation of an Annual “Education Day” to Foster Medical Education Scholarship in a Regional Campus System
    (University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing, 2024-06-24) Kochhar, Komal; Soleimani, Leila; Byrne, Bobbi; Stefanidis, Dimitrios; Pettit, Katie; Zakeri, Bita; Denny, Kim; Brokaw, James; Wallach, Paul
    We implemented an annual “Education Day” at Indiana University School of Medicine to promote educational scholarship across our nine-campus system. Held each spring from 2020 to 2023, Education Day showcased the educational scholarship of our faculty, staff, and learners, and provided a forum to share best educational practices and forge new collaborations.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Implementation of Faculty Learning Communities to Support Medical Education Scholarship in a Regional Campus System
    (Minnesota Libraries Publishing, 2023) Kochhar, Komal; Longtin, Krista; Wilson, Shawn; Ho, Monling; Brokaw, James; Wallach, Paul
    Introduction: Medical educators need targeted faculty development programs to give them the skills necessary to produce educational scholarship for promotion and tenure. At the Indiana University School of Medicine, which encompasses a large regional campus system, we implemented Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) to provide a platform for medical educators to engage in a collaborative, year-long educational research project facilitated by a faculty member well-versed in educational research. Methods: 18 faculty participants were assigned to one of 4 FLC groups, which met monthly from 2019 to 2020. The participants also attended a series of one-hour monthly educational seminars designed to build foundational skills in educational research. To assess program effectiveness, participants were surveyed at 6 months and 18 months after the start of the program. Results: 94% of participants completed the 6-month survey and 56% completed the 18-month survey. A majority of respondents at both time-points (88% and 60%, respectively) agreed or strongly agreed that the FLC process met their professional development needs to help move their educational scholarship forward. At the time of the 18-month survey, 50% of respondents had submitted their work for presentation at a regional or national conference or for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, with the remainder intending to do so. Discussion: The inaugural offering of this FLC program has established a successful and sustainable model for developing medical educators. By employing the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle for process improvement, several changes to the program have already been instituted that should further bolster the scholarly productivity of our medical educators.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Simulation in medical education : a case study evaluating the efficacy of high-fidelity patient simulation
    (2018-07) Klein, Barbie Ann; O'Loughlin, Valerie Dean; Brokaw, James; Husmann, Polly; Cole, James
    High-fidelity patient simulation (HFPS) recreates clinical scenarios by combining mock patients and realistic environments to prepare learners with practical experience to meet the demands of modern clinical practice while ensuring patient safety. This research investigated the efficacy of HFPS in medical education through a case study of the Indiana University Bloomington Interprofessional Simulation Center. The goal of this research was to understand the role of simulated learning for attaining clinical selfefficacy and how HFPS training impacts performance. Three research questions were addressed to investigate HFPS in medical education using a mixed methods study design. Clinical competence and self-efficacy were quantified among medical students at IUSMBloomington utilizing HFPS compared to two IUSM campuses that did not incorporate this instructional intervention. Clinical competence was measured as performance on the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), while self-efficacy of medical students was measured through a validated questionnaire. Although the effect of HFPS on quantitative results was not definitive, general trends allude to the ability of HFPS to recalibrate learners’ perceived and actual performance. Additionally, perceptual data regarding HFPS from both medical students and medical residents was analyzed. Qualitative results discovered the utility of HFPS for obtaining the clinical mental framework of a physician, fundamental psychomotor skills, and essential practice communicating and functioning as a healthcare team during interprofessional education simulations. Continued studies of HFPS are necessary to fully elucidate the value of this instructional adjunct, however positive outcomes of simulated learning on both medical students and medical residents were discovered in this study contributing to the existing HFPS literature.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Statewide Synergy: Showcasing Scholarship and Innovation in Medical Education at IUSM, 2020-2024
    (2024) Kochhar, Komal; Soleimani, Leila; Byrne, Bobbi; Stefanidis, Dimitrios; Pettit, Katie; Zakeri, Bita; Denny, Kim; McNulty , Margaret; Hoffman, Leslie; Brokaw, James; Wallach, Paul
    Background IUSM employs a large geographically distributed system of medical education composed of 8 regional medical campuses statewide with the main medical campus in Indianapolis. An inherent challenge of operating such a large multi-campus system is being able to provide relevant professional development opportunities for all our medical educators and staff from across the state, as well as to provide our learners with formative opportunities to engage with faculty and peers in a community of scholars. Study objective We planned and implemented a one-day event available to all faculty, staff, and learners from across our multi-campus system with a focus on medical education scholarship. Methods In March 2020, the first Education Day took place on the Indianapolis campus, orchestrated by a five-member Planning Committee from the Dean’s Office of Educational Affairs. Peer-reviewed proposals culminated in oral and poster presentations, workshops, and group discussions. Eight themed sessions included presentations about specific aspects of IUSM’s educational mission: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Wellness, Point-of-Care Ultrasound, Simulation, Undergraduate Medical Education, Graduate Medical Education, Regional Medical Campuses, and Biomedical (MS/PhD) Education. A lunchtime keynote address was given by a nationally recognized medical educator. The day-long event ended with an awards ceremony to recognize the “best” faculty, staff, and learner proposals. With minimal variation, a similar planning process and agenda were used for the subsequent Education Days held in late April 2021 (virtual), 2022, and 2023. About 40 faculty reviewers from across campuses reviewed submissions using a standard rubric. Each submission was reviewed by two reviewers with a third reviewer resolving any split decisions. Accepted proposals were archived in the University’s ScholarWorks Digital Repository to extend their reach. Results Over four years, an average of 132 proposals were reviewed annually, with attendance averaging 281, trending upwards each year. While most attendees were from Indianapolis campus (76%), participation from the RMCs (24%) increased each year. Attendees represented basic science departments (17%), clinical departments (61%), and other school units, e.g., library, Dean’s offices, etc. (22%). Education Day presenters included faculty (38%), staff (12%), and learners (50%). The “learners” included medical students, residents, fellows, and a few graduate students. Beginning in 2022, we included Scholarly Concentration projects from medical students statewide which were presented during a special poster session. Post-event survey data across the four years revealed high satisfaction, with 81% rating the event as “excellent” or “very good.” Majority “strongly agreed” or “agreed” that Education Day met their professional expectations and needs (88%); provided supporting material/tools helpful to their professional role (83%); and included opportunities to learn interactively (82%). As a result of this event, majority “strongly agreed” or “agreed” they will be better able to network and collaborate with other IUSM colleagues (87%), identify best practices in medical education (81%), learn to present and publish educational outcomes data (75%), and describe current approaches to evaluate learners (73%). Conclusions IUSM’s Annual Education Day has established itself as a successful venue to share educational best practices, forge new collaborations, and encourage participation from all IUSM campuses.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Visual literacy in anatomy
    (2016-07) Barger, J. Bradley; O'Loughlin, Valerie D.; Brokaw, James; Estell, David; Mescher, Anthony
    All branches of anatomy (gross anatomy, histology, neuroanatomy, and embryology) involve significant amounts of visual identification. Understanding the spatial relationship and visual representations of anatomical structures forms the basis for much of anatomy education, particularly in laboratory courses. Students in these courses frequently struggle with the visual aspects of identification, and many lack the metacognitive awareness to identify this problem. The research presented here details a series of experiments designed to elucidate the factors involved in students’ difficulties with studying the visual aspects of anatomy. All of the research projects discussed involved surveying students about their specific study habits. Student populations surveyed include first-year medical students and undergraduates in anatomy, physiology. These populations were surveyed about their study habits in each course, and their level of familiarity with visual learning. Additionally some populations were given a mental rotation test to assess their spatial abilities. These survey data were then correlated with course grades in an effort to determine the most successful study strategies. Active learning approaches (including student-produced drawings) were most strongly correlated with high course grades. However, efforts to teach lower-performing students active learning skills did not produce significant results, possibly due to the lack of a metacognitive component in this instruction. The results of each project indicate a lack of good study skills among students at all levels of anatomy instruction, and highlight the need for more instruction in how to study for anatomy, including metacognitive awareness, especially focused on the visual aspects of the course.