Marks C J, Louw A J N, Couper I
Centre for Health Professions Education, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.
Division of Clinical Pharmacology, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa.
Afr J Emerg Med. 2020 Dec;10(4):173-180. doi: 10.1016/j.afjem.2020.05.011. Epub 2020 Jul 6.
The availability of trained Medical Toxicologists in developing countries is limited and education in Medical Toxicology remains inadequate. The lack of toxicology services contributes to a knowledge gap in the management of poisonings. A need existed to investigate the core competencies required by toxicology graduates to effectively operate in a Poisons Information Centre. The aim of this study was to obtain consensus from an expert group of health care workers on these core competencies. This was done by making use of the Delphi technique.
The Delphi survey started with a set of carefully selected questions drawn from various sources including a literature review and exploration of existing curricula. To capture the collective opinion of experts in South Africa, Africa and also globally, three different groups were invited to participate in the study. To build and manage the questionnaire, the secure Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) web platform was used.
A total of 134 competencies were selected for the three rounds and in the end consensus was reached on 118 (88%) items. Panel members agreed that 113 (96%) of these items should be incorporated in a Medical Toxicology curriculum and five (4%) should be excluded.
All participants agreed that effective communication is an essential skill for toxicology graduates. The curriculum can address this problem by including effective pedagogy to enhance oral and written communication skills.Feedback from panellists indicated that the questionnaires were country-specific and not necessarily representative of all geographical locations. This is an example of the 'battle of curriculum design' where the context in which the curriculum will be used, will determine the content.
The Delphi method, based on three iterative rounds and feedback from experts, was effective in reaching consensus on the learning outcomes of a Medical Toxicology curriculum. The study results will ultimately improve education in Medical Toxicology.
发展中国家训练有素的医学毒理学家数量有限，医学毒理学教育仍然不足。毒理学服务的缺乏导致了中毒管理方面的知识差距。有必要调查毒理学专业毕业生在毒物信息中心有效工作所需的核心能力。本研究的目的是就这些核心能力获得医护人员专家小组的共识。这是通过德尔菲技术完成的。
德尔菲调查始于一组精心挑选的问题，这些问题来自包括文献综述和现有课程探索在内的各种来源。为了收集南非、非洲以及全球专家的集体意见，邀请了三个不同的小组参与该研究。为了构建和管理问卷，使用了安全的研究电子数据采集（REDCap）网络平台。
三轮共选出134项能力，最终就118项（88%）达成了共识。小组成员一致认为，其中113项（96%）应纳入医学毒理学课程，5项（4%）应排除。
所有参与者都同意，有效沟通是毒理学专业毕业生的一项基本技能。课程可以通过纳入有效的教学方法来提高口头和书面沟通技能来解决这个问题。小组成员的反馈表明，问卷是针对特定国家的，不一定代表所有地理位置。这是“课程设计之争”的一个例子，即课程使用的背景将决定内容。
基于三轮迭代和专家反馈的德尔菲方法有效地就医学毒理学课程的学习成果达成了共识。研究结果最终将改善医学毒理学教育。
