Kwi Hwa Park

The Effects of Attribution Tendencies, Academic Stress, and Coping Efficacy on Academic Adjustment of Medical Students

PURPOSE This study investigated the relationship among types of attribution tendencies, academic stress, coping efficacy, and academic adjustment in medical students and identified the means by which the academic adjustment of medical students can improve. METHODS Four hundred forty-two subjects from 2 medical schools in Korea were analyzed; 202 were male, 206 were female, and 34 did not identify their gender. We surveyed their academic adjustment, attribution tendencies, academic stress, and coping efficacy. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test, and stepwise multiple regression analysis. RESULTS The male group scored higher on academic adjustment, internal attribution tendency, and coping efficacy but lower on academic stress than the female group. Coping efficacy and internal attribution tendency affected the academic adjustment positively while academic stress influenced it negatively. CONCLUSION The study indicates that students with higher scores on coping efficacy and internal attribution tendency and who have lower scores on academic stress tend to adjust better academically in medical school. Therefore, these findings may be helpful for medical schools in designing effective academic adjustment programs to improve coping efficacy and internal attribution tendency and reduce academic stress. Further, these findings have important implications for planning learning consultation programs, especially in Year 1.

Relationships among emotional intelligence, ego-resilience, coping efficacy, and academic stress in medical students

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to identify the causal relationship between emotional intelligence, ego-resilience, coping efficacy, and academic stress. METHODS Participants were 424 medical students from four medical schools in Korea. We examined their emotional intelligence, ego-resilience, coping efficacy, and academic stress using a t-test, an analysis of variance, correlational analysis, and path analysis. RESULTS First- and second-year students scored higher on academic stress than did those from third- and fourth-year students. Further, coping efficacy mediated the relationships between emotional intelligence, ego-resilience, and academic stress. Academic stress was directly influenced by coping efficacy, and indirectly by emotional intelligence and ego-resilience. This showed that coping efficacy play an important role in academic stress. CONCLUSION Our findings may help medical schools design educational programs to improve coping efficacy in students, and to reduce their academic stress.

Implementation of a problem-based learning program combined with team-based learning.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation of problem-based learning (PBL), in combination with team-based learning (TBL), in an integrated curriculum at Gachon University School of Medicine. METHODS The study methods included in-depth interviews and an open questionnaire. The subjects of the study comprised 5 faculty members and 38 second-year graduate students. RESULTS PBL, combined with TBL, was not helpful in enhancing student ability with regard to reasoning and self-directed learning. This program also had negative effects, increasing student tension and interfering with the dynamics of discussions due to frequent tutor intervention. CONCLUSION Overall, PBL that is combined with TBL was a less useful method than PBL only. We recommended understanding the characteristics of each program and attempting to develop better programs that mix the positive aspects of TBL and PBL.

Development and validation of the medical student stress scale in Korea

PURPOSE Medical students experience various stresses that arise in a special environment. However, there is no specific stress scale for medical students with regard to their environment in Korea. Therefore, in this study, we developed and confirmed the validity of a stress scale for medical students in Korea. METHODS A draft version of the scale was developed on the basis of open-ended questionnaires from 97 medical students. The validity of the content of this scale was evaluated by three medical educationists. The scale was administered to 435 third and fourth grade medical students as the main survey. For our data, we performed an exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. We used Cronbach α index to determine internal consistency. RESULTS Six factors with 40 items were extracted through the exploratory factor analysis: academic stress (9 items); clerkship stress (11 items); interpersonal stress (7 items); career stress (8 items); health-related stress (3 items); and financial stress (2 items). These factors showed a statistically significant correlation. The confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated a favorable RMSEA (0.053) and reasonable fit (CFI=0.847, TLI=0.833). Cronbach α values of the six factors ranged from 0.63 to 0.85. CONCLUSION The medical student stress scale had a good model fit. It is a valid and reliable instrument in identifying stress in medical students and can be used in future studies. Also, the scale is expected to provide individual stress profiles for students to help them manage stress more effectively.

Perceived Social Support as a Determinant of Quality of Life Among Medical Students: 6-Month Follow-up Study.

ObjectiveThis longitudinal study aimed to identify the relevant factors related to quality of life (QoL) changes in medical students.MethodsFor this 6-month follow-up study, we enrolled 109 students from a Korean medical school. To assess students’ QoL, we used the World Health Organization QoL scale. Possible determinants of student QoL included demographics, fatigue, and social support. A stepwise multivariate analysis identified factors associated with changes of student QoL.ResultsAmong sources of support, the “friends” category was the main position affecting their overall QoL, and “significant other” had the strongest influence on psychological and social domains. The impact of support from friends on QoL was confirmed in the longitudinal analysis. Final regression models revealed that providing students with more social support and promoting fatigue reduction best improved medical student sense of well-being.ConclusionCreating stronger student support programs to prevent social detachment and implementing strategies to reduce fatigue can improve QoL in medical students.

The differences in self-efficacy in clinical performance between medical students and residents

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to compare the differences in self-efficacy in clinical performance (SECP) between medical students and residents. METHODS A total of 267 medical students and 110 residents participated in a survey on SECP with regard to seven factors: knowledge acquisition and application, clinical reasoning, clinical skills, communication with patients, relationships with other health professionals, medical ethics, and self-development. The data were examined by multivariate analysis of variance. RESULTS Residents had higher scores for clinical skills than students (F[1, 372]=8.919, p<0.01), whereas students scored significantly higher for communication with patients (F[1, 372]=26.779, p<0.001), relationships with other health professionals (F[1, 372]=12.807, p<0.001), medical ethics (F[1, 372]=40.136, p<0.001), and self-development (F[1, 372]=32.380, p<0.001). There were no differences between genders or specialties of residents. CONCLUSION There are differences in SECP between students and residents. These results can guide the design of self-efficacy improvement programs.

Development of Learning Consultation Program for Medical Students

PURPOSE The purpose of this report was to develop a learning consultation program to help medical students adjust to studying. Also, it investigated students with learning difficulties and determined their learning needs. METHODS Four hundred forty-two medical students from 2 medical schools in Korea were surveyed with regard to learning difficulties and learning consultation needs. Of the respondents, 202 students were male and 206 were female; the remained was unidentified. We used frequency and crosstab analysis to analyze the data from the survey. RESULTS The needs analysis showed that first-year students had the most serious academic difficulties of those who were surveyed, possessing a lack of learning skills and medical adaptation to clinical situations. In response, these students wished to receive learning consultation from the medical faculty and senior students. Thus, we developed a learning consultation program for medical students, based on learning consultation cases in domestic and foreign universities. CONCLUSION This study indicates that medical students have learning difficulties and need learning consultations, especially first-year students. Therefore, we developed a learning consultation program that consists of problem screening, problem specifications, and choosing strategies. After implementing the program, it can help medical students adjust to the medical environment. Furthermore, these findings have implications for studies on learning consultation programs for medical students.

Educational value of pocket-sized ultrasound devices to improve understanding of ultrasound examination principles and sonographic anatomy for medical student.

Purpose Medical students must understand the principles of ultrasonography (US), because US examinations are an important component of patient care in clinical practice. Pocket-sized ultrasound devices have the benefits of accessibility and ease of use. The primary objective of the present study was to evaluate the educational value of these devices in terms of improving medical student interest and understanding of US and sonographic anatomy. Methods We added a US training program comprised of a self-study learning module and a hands-on training session to a two-week block curriculum of medical imaging for first year medical students (n = 40). Multiple pocket-sized US devices were used on a small-group basis during a single afternoon. Students were asked to complete a questionnaire before and after the US training session; these two questionnaires contained 6 and 10 questions, respectively, which were rated by students using a five-point Likert scale. In addition, understanding of sonographic anatomy was tested before and after the training program. Results Forty students completed the two questionnaires and the anatomy-related tests. Students found the program educationally valuable (4.37 ± 0.54 of 5) and reported that US practice was useful for improving their understanding of the principles of US examinations (4.23 ± 0.66 of 5) and sonographic anatomy (4.40 ± 0.55 of 5). Overall confidence at performing US examinations and understanding of sonographic anatomy were significantly increased after US training (increased overall confidence score, 1.87 ± 0.91 and improvement in sonographic anatomy score, 6.55 ± 1.55, p values < 0.001). Conclusion US training using pocket-sized ultrasound devices was found to be educationally valuable for medical students in terms of improving understanding of US principles and familiarizing students with sonographic anatomy.

The Development and Effects of a Presentation Skill Improvement Program for Medical School Students

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to develop and examine a program that was designed to improve the presentation skills of medical school students. METHODS The program was implemented in 2-day workshops for 36 third-grade medical students in 2009, using the following procedures in order: needs assessment; an initial group presentation and peer evaluation; an initial self-evaluation with video recording; viewing of a model presentation; a second presentation in a group and peer evaluation; and a second self-assessment. Two types of survey questionnaires were used: a self-evaluation checklist and a questionnaire on workshop satisfaction and confidence of presentation. RESULTS Eighty-three percent of the students recognized the importance of presentation skills. There were significant differences in 3 factors of self-evaluation-constructing contents, utilizing audio-visual media, and delivery skills- but not with regard to understanding content. In the post workshop satisfaction survey, participants reported that the workshop was helpful in improving their own presentation skills. They also stated that presentation in a group, peer feedback, and video analysis of the recording were helpful. After the workshop, students claimed that their confidence scores in utilizing audio-visual media were the highest. CONCLUSION Medical students realize the importance of presentation skills training and workshops in increasing presentation skills and improving confidence in presenting. Video analysis and feedback of each participants presentation within the group was effective in upgrading the students presentation skills.

Experiences of medical teachers in flipped learning for medical students: a phenomenological study

Purpose The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of medical teachers in the process of adapting flipped learning method through a phenomenological approach. Methods Semi-structured interviews with five medical teachers from two medical colleges and one medical school were conducted in December, 2017. Data analysis was done according to Colaizzi’s descriptive phenomenological methodology. Results A total of 160 unique significant statements were extracted. These statements generated 17 formulated meanings that were categorized into seven theme clusters and four theme categories. Main themes were: (1) teacher with high levels of passion and motivation; (2) hurdles of flipped learning: students were still passive, struggling in preparing for flipped learning; (3) positive changes from flipped learning: changes to classroom environment and teachers’ reflection through experience; and (4) challenges of flipped learning: remaining tasks for teachers, expansion of flipped learning. Conclusion Through phenomenological approach, researchers were able to elucidate categories about the experience of medical teachers when attempting flipped learning. Although medical teachers did not have the exact same idea on how flipped learning was conducted and implemented, the perception of flipped learning, or difficulties in class activities, they were still wondering how they could teach students well. This study might draw more attention to flipped learning and stimulate educational and institutional supports to improve teaching and learning in medical schools.