Alexander M. Djuricich

A continuous quality improvement curriculum for residents: addressing core competency, improving systems.

Purpose. To describe the development, implementation, and evaluation of a residency continuous quality improvement (CQI) curriculum. Method. Forty-four medicine and pediatrics residents participated in a CQI curriculum. Resident-designed projects were scored for CQI construct skills using a grading tool. Pre- and post-tests evaluated knowledge, perceived knowledge, interest, and self-efficacy. Results. Differences between pre- and post-test perceived knowledge and self-efficacy were highly significant (p < .001). The mean project score was 81.7% (SD 8.3%). Higher knowledge was associated with higher ratings of self-efficacy. There was no correlation of measured knowledge with project score or interest. Conclusions. Resident education and learning in CQI served to produce innovative and creative improvement projects that demonstrated individual residents’ competency in practice-based learning and improvement.

Live tweeting in medicine: ‘Tweeting the meeting’

Abstract Medical conferences create an opportunity for lifelong learning for healthcare practitioners. The use of Twitter at such conferences continues to expand. This article focuses on how Twitter can be used by physicians and other healthcare providers at regional, national and international conferences, and also at local conferences, such as grand rounds. It also addresses the potential utility of Twitter chats and journal clubs in the promotion of lifelong learning. The impact of Twitter use in healthcare in general, and specifically at conferences, and how it can be measured, is discussed.

The influence of the residency application process on the online social networking behavior of medical students: A single institutional study

Purpose To evaluate medical students’ behavior regarding online social networks (OSNs) in preparation for the residency matching process. The specific aims were to quantify the use of OSNs by students to determine whether and how these students were changing OSN profiles in preparation for the residency application process, and to determine attitudes toward residency directors using OSNs as a screening method to evaluate potential candidates. Method An e-mail survey was sent to 618 third- and fourth-year medical students at Indiana University School of Medicine over a three-week period in 2012. Statistical analysis was completed using nonparametric statistical tests. Results Of the 30.1% (183/608) who responded to the survey, 98.9% (181/183) of students reported using OSNs. More than half, or 60.1% (110/183), reported that they would (or did) alter their OSN profile before residency matching. Respondents’ opinions regarding the appropriateness of OSN screening by residency directors were mixed; however, most respondents did not feel that their online OSN profiles should be used in the residency application process. Conclusions The majority of respondents planned to (or did) alter their OSN profile in preparation for the residency match process. The majority believed that residency directors are screening OSN profiles during the matching process, although most did not believe their OSN profiles should be used in the residency application process. This study implies that the more medical students perceive that residency directors use social media in application screening processes, the more they will alter their online profiles to adapt to protect their professional persona.

Letter by Djuricich and Madanick Regarding Article, “A Randomized Trial of Social Media From Circulation”

We applaud Fox et al1 and Circulation for designing a randomized trial of social media to study the potential impact of social media on journal reach. Similar to health care in general, journals themselves must adapt to a changing environment, and the use of social media and other emerging technologies will clearly alter this landscape. Advocates of the use of social media in medicine and medical education have been quick to question the …

Changing Continuing Medical Education.

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: The authors have completed and submitted the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest. Dr Hatta reported receiving lecture honoraria from Astellas, Dainippon-Sumitomo, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Meiji Seika, Otsuka, Pfizer, Takeda, and TanabeMitsubishi. Dr Kishi reported receiving honoraria from Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Mochida, MSD, Otsuka, Pfizer, Shionogi, Takeda, and Tsumura; and serving as consultant for Meiji Seika. Dr Wada reported receiving honoraria from Eisai, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Meiji Seika, MSD, Novartis, Otsuka, Pfizer, Shionogi, Takeda, Kyowahakko-Kirin, and Tanabe-Mitsubishi.