Background Transitioning from preclinical to clinical medical education is a significant milestone in medical training; however, it is associated with anxiety and uncertainty about adapting to a new work and learning environment. These feelings may be additionally heightened when students are also transitioning to a branch or regional campus for their clerkship training. A guided, near-peer mentorship program was designed at a regional medical campus in hopes of reducing anxiety associated with transitioning into clinical rotations, as well as teach clinical medical students how to effectively mentor a fellow student. Methods This curricular improvement program was developed and implemented at a regional campus of a US Midwestern medical school. A list of 14 topics for discussion was created from responses to reflection questions completed by students participating in the program. These topics were sorted into meeting guides that mentors could reference during three individual meetings with their mentee. Mentors attended a workshop prior to the start of the program to learn more about effective mentorship in medicine. Participants from the first two years of this program were asked to complete feedback surveys evaluating their experience in the program. Results Forty-one of 48 potential second-year students agreed to participate as mentees and 40 of 48 potential third-year students agreed to participate as mentors. Ninety-two percent of mentees agreed that participating in the program decreased their stress and anxiety about transitioning into clerkships and 96% reported they would recommend the program to other students. Among the mentors, 93% reported they would recommend the program to other students and 78% agreed that the mentorship skills they practiced during the program are useful in their professional and academic development. Discussion With the introduction of this guided, near-peer mentorship program, mentees reported feeling supported in their transition into clinical clerkships and mentors reported feeling prepared to effectively mentor a fellow student. Though such one-on-one programs can be somewhat time-intensive to establish and execute, the skills gained by mentors can serve them for the rest of their careers and the individualized advice given to mentees markedly decreases anxiety in a high-stress transition.
Objective: Assess postpartum contraceptive preferences and use before and after implementation of interventions to improve contraceptive counseling at a free clinic for uninsured pregnant patients. Methods: This was a pre- and post-intervention observational study in Iowa City, Iowa, that included patients from February 2019 – December 2021. Multilingual educational charts and an electronic medical record (EMR) template reminder to prompt antenatal contraceptive discussion were implemented in April 2021. Results: There were 117 pre-intervention patients and 33 post-intervention. Prior to the intervention, 30% of patients had no documentation of contraceptive counseling; afterward, 3% had no documentation (p=.001). Thirty-three percent of patients obtained highly or moderately effective contraception prior to the interventions and 52% did after (p=.068). Conclusions: Multi-lingual educational handouts and an EMR template reminder were associated with increased postpartum contraceptive counseling; contraceptive use also generally increased with the interventions. Increasing access to contraceptive education may increase contraceptive autonomy in underserved populations.
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