From the Center for Patient Safety, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.
Department of Anaesthesiology, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.
J Patient Saf. 2022 Sep 1;18(6):637-644. doi: 10.1097/PTS.0000000000001010. Epub 2022 May 4.
Global efforts are being made to improve health care standards and the quality of care provided. It has been shown through research that the introduction of patient safety (PS) and quality improvement (QI) concepts in the medical curriculum prepares medical students to face future challenges in their professional careers.
This study aimed to evaluate how a brief course on QI and PS affects the knowledge, efficacy, and system thinking of medical students.
A 5-day QI and PS intervention course was implemented at the Aga Khan University medical college for 98 third-year medical students in March 2021. This weeklong course of lectures, interactive sessions, and hands-on skill workshops was conducted before the students began their clinical rotations. Students' knowledge, self-efficacy, and system thinking were assessed with pretest and posttest. Students were also asked to write personal reflections and fill out a satisfaction survey at the end of the intervention.
Comparisons of pretest and posttest scores showed that the course significantly improved students' knowledge by a mean of 2.92 points (95% confidence interval, 2.30-3.53; P < 0.001) and system thinking by 0.16 points (95% confidence interval, 0.03-0.29; P = 0.018) of the maximum scores of 20 and 5 points, respectively. The students' self-assessment of PS knowledge also reflected statistically significant increases in all 9 domains ( P < 0.001). Students reported positive experiences with this course in their personal reflections.
The medical students exhibited increases in knowledge, self-efficacy, and system thinking after this weeklong intervention. The design of the course can be modified as needed and implemented at other institutions in low- and middle-income countries. A targeted long-term assessment of knowledge and attitudes is needed to fully evaluate the impact of this course.
全球正在努力提高医疗保健标准和提供的护理质量。研究表明，在医学课程中引入患者安全（PS）和质量改进（QI）概念，可使医学生为未来的职业挑战做好准备。
本研究旨在评估短期 QI 和 PS 课程如何影响医学生的知识、效能感和系统思维。
2021 年 3 月，在阿迦汗大学医学院为 98 名三年级医学生实施了为期 5 天的 QI 和 PS 干预课程。该为期一周的课程包括讲座、互动环节和实践技能工作坊，在学生开始临床轮转之前进行。在干预前后通过前测和后测评估学生的知识、自我效能感和系统思维。学生还被要求在干预结束时写个人反思并填写满意度调查。
前测和后测分数的比较表明，该课程显著提高了学生的知识，平均提高了 2.92 分（95%置信区间，2.30-3.53；P < 0.001），系统思维提高了 0.16 分（95%置信区间，0.03-0.29；P = 0.018），满分分别为 20 分和 5 分。学生对 PS 知识的自我评估也反映了所有 9 个领域的统计学显著增加（P < 0.001）。学生在个人反思中报告了对该课程的积极体验。
经过为期一周的干预，医学生的知识、自我效能感和系统思维均有所提高。可以根据需要修改课程设计，并在其他中低收入国家的机构中实施。需要进行针对性的长期知识和态度评估，以充分评估该课程的影响。
