Analysis of the Viewpoint of First Postgraduate Year Residents Towards General Medicine Training

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study is to investigate the perceived learning effectiveness of first postgraduate year (PGY1) residents and their viewpoints on general medicine training. Methods: PGY1 residents in the academic year 2006 were the study subjects. The study was conducted from January to June 2007. The degree of helpfulness and the perceived stress levels of the students were assessed. The approach to this assessment of the training program involved open questioning. The dataset was analyzed by qualitative methods. Results: A total of 407 PGY1 residents were assessed to explore the helpfulness of five training modules . The results gave the following decending order of helpfulness: the holistic care training in a specialty field , the specialty related elective course, general practice training, the basic community medicine course and the community medicine related elective course. The perceived stress levels for these courses, also in decending order, were: the specialty related elective course, the holistic care training in a specialty field, general practice training, the community medicine related elective course and the basic community medicine course. A total of 467 residents filled out the open questionnaire. Residents believed that the general medicine training was able to promote their holistic care competency and helped them understand the medical care model and medical care behavior as well as helping their career planning. However, the less concrete the teaching material, any fluctuation in teaching quality, overlapping of a course with internship and overloading with administrative clerical work were identified as weaknesses by the residents. Some even complained that the one-year training period was over-long and should be shortened. Conclusion: PGY1 residents were found to center their interest on training in their specialty. The planning of the one-year course should be more precise and concrete in order to promote learning effectiveness.