Research on transitions has objectified the challenges students and doctors face. Clarifying studies often lack conceptual frameworks that could help us to gain deeper insight into the observed phenomena. Psychology offers valuable theoretical perspectives that are applicable to medical education transitions. To transform a transition from a threat to a learning opportunity, medical education should assist students and doctors in developing the coping skills they need to effectively deal with the challenges presented by new environments.

The conceptual framework finds support in transition psychology and notions from organizational socialization literature. It provides insight into the transition from resident to attending physician that can inform measures to smooth the intense transition.

Introduction Transitions are traditionally viewed as challenging for clinicians. Throughout medical career pathways, clinicians need to successfully navigate successive transitions as they become progressively more independent practitioners. In these guidelines, we aim to synthesize the evidence from the literature to provide guidance for supporting clinicians in their development of independence, and highlight areas for further research. Methods Drawing upon D3 method guidance, four key themes universal to medical career transitions and progressive independence were identified by all authors through discussion and consensus from our own experience and expertise: workplace learning, independence and responsibility, mentoring and coaching, and patient perspectives. A scoping review of the literature was conducted using Medline database searches in addition to the authors' personal archives and reference snowballing searches. Results 387 articles were identified and screened. 210 were excluded as not relevant to medical transitions (50 at title screen; 160 at abstract screen). 177 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility; a further 107 were rejected (97 did not include career transitions in their study design; 10 were review articles; the primary references of these were screened for inclusion). 70 articles were included of which 60 provided extractable data for the final qualitative synthesis. Across the four key themes, seven do's, two don'ts and seven don't knows were identified, and the strength of evidence was graded for each of these recommendations. Conclusion The two strongest messages arising from current literature are first, transitions should not be viewed as one moment in time: career trajectories are a continuum with valuable opportunities for personal and professional development throughout. Second, learning needs to be embedded in practice and learners provided with authentic and meaningful learning opportunities. In this paper, we propose evidence-based guidelines aimed at facilitating such transitions through the fostering of progressive independence.

These findings illustrate the relevance of generic competencies for new hospital consultants. Furthermore, social support facilitates this intense and stressful stage within the medical career.

BackgroundE-learning is driving major shifts in medical education. Prioritizing learning theories and quality models improves the success of e-learning programs. Although many e-learning quality standards are available, few are focused on postgraduate medical education.MethodsWe conducted an integrative review of the current postgraduate medical e-learning literature to identify quality specifications. The literature was thematically organized into a working model.ResultsUnique quality specifications (n = 72) were consolidated and re-organized into a six-domain model that we called the Postgraduate Medical E-learning Model (Postgraduate ME Model). This model was partially based on the ISO-19796 standard, and drew on cognitive load multimedia principles. The domains of the model are preparation, software design and system specifications, communication, content, assessment, and maintenance.ConclusionThis review clarified the current state of postgraduate medical e-learning standards and specifications. It also synthesized these specifications into a single working model. To validate our findings, the next-steps include testing the Postgraduate ME Model in controlled e-learning settings.

These outcomes are in line with theoretical notions regarding innovations in general and may be helpful in the implementation of other innovations in PGME. Given the substantial effects of innovations outside the strictly education-related domain, individuals designing and implementing innovations should consider all potential effects, including those identified in this study.

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Background Electronic learning (e-learning) in postgraduate medical education has seen a rapid evolution; however, we tend to evaluate it only on its primary outcome or learning aim, whereas its effectiveness also depends on its instructional design. We believe it is important to have an overview of all the methods currently used to evaluate e-learning design so that the preferred method may be identified and the next steps needed to continue to evaluate postgraduate medical e-learning may be outlined. Objective This study aimed to identify and compare the outcomes and methods used to evaluate postgraduate medical e-learning. Methods We performed a systematic literature review using the Web of Science, PubMed, Education Resources Information Center, and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature databases. Studies that used postgraduates as participants and evaluated any form of e-learning were included. Studies without any evaluation outcome (eg, just a description of e-learning) were excluded. Results The initial search identified 5973 articles, of which we used 418 for our analysis. The types of studies were trials, prospective cohorts, case reports, and reviews. The primary outcomes of the included studies were knowledge, skills, and attitude. A total of 12 instruments were used to evaluate a specific primary outcome, such as laparoscopic skills or stress related to training. The secondary outcomes mainly evaluated satisfaction, motivation, efficiency, and usefulness. We found 13 e-learning design methods across 19 studies (4% 19/418). The methods evaluated usability, motivational characteristics, and the use of learning styles or were based on instructional design theories, such as Gagne’s instructional design, the Heidelberg inventory, Kern’s curriculum development steps, and a scale based on the cognitive load theory. Finally, 2 instruments attempted to evaluate several aspects of a design, based on the experience of creating e-learning. Conclusions Evaluating the effect of e-learning design is complicated. Given the diversity of e-learning methods, there are many ways to carry out such an evaluation, and probably, many ways to do so correctly. However, the current literature shows us that we have yet to reach any form of consensus about which indicators to evaluate. There is a great need for an evaluation tool that is properly constructed, validated, and tested. This could be a more homogeneous way to compare the effects of e-learning and for the authors of e-learning to continue to improve their product.