Background: Research education and opportunities are an important part of undergraduate medical education. This study's objectives were to determine students' interest in research, student self-rated research skills, and to assess potential predictors of research interest and confidence.Methods: Stakeholder consultation and literature informed a 13-item cross-sectional survey. In 2014, all students enrolled in McMaster University's School of Medicine in Ontario, Canada were sent an electronic survey and two subsequent reminder e-mails. Results:The response rate was 81% (498 of 618). Most (n=445, 89%) had prior research experiences. The majority of students (n=383, 86%) wanted more research education and opportunities. Higher rating of their supervisors' understanding of research was associated with greater interest in research (OR=2.08; 95% CI=1.27-3.41). Home campus (distributed vs. main) was not a significant predictor of research interest. In our adjusted linear regression model, the most significant predictors of higher self-rated research ability were prior thesis work and other prior research experience. Conclusion:In a survey of a three-year medical school, medical student interest in further research education and opportunities was high and positively predicted by student-rated supervisors' understanding of research, but not campus location. This study also identified several predictors of student self-rated research ability.
BACKGROUND Recent recommendations indicate that one red blood cell (RBC) unit should be transfused at a time, with reassessment after each transfusion, which may be extrapolated from literature supporting restrictive transfusion triggers rather than specific evidence. Therefore, two systematic reviews were performed to identify the following: 1) RBC transfusion guidelines and review articles to determine if single‐ or multiple‐unit transfusion strategies are recommended and 2) studies comparing strategies for evidence of benefit. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, National Guideline Clearinghouse, and Trip Database were searched (inception to June 2017). For the first review, the proportion of articles with single/multiple‐unit recommendations was assessed and stratified by article type. For the second review, the primary outcome was RBC use. Secondary outcomes included proportion of transfusion episodes using a single‐unit strategy, length of stay, and mortality. RESULTS The first review identified 145 articles for analysis, with 51 transfusion guidelines. Only 14 guidelines (27%) made a recommendation, with most (93%) recommending single‐unit transfusions. The second review identified seven cohort studies comparing preimplementation and postimplementation of a policy encouraging single‐unit transfusion strategies. Meta‐analysis could not be performed for outcomes given inconsistencies in reporting. RBC use decreased by approximately 10 to 41% across studies. CONCLUSION Transfusion guidelines lack recommendations to transfuse to a single‐unit strategy. Mostly retrospective cohort studies (six of seven) are inconsistent in outcome reporting but suggest improved RBC use. Further high‐quality studies could identify the benefits of a single‐unit transfusion strategy, determine the applicability to different clinical settings, and inform future practice guidelines.
Background: We previously reported on a cross-sectional study of students from the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster University that found most respondents wanted more opportunities to participate in research. Students provided additional comments that we synthesized to enrich the findings of our quantitative analysis. Methods: From our previously administered 13-item, online questionnaire, run across three campuses in Ontario, Canada, 498 of 618 medical students completed our survey and 360 (72%) provided optional written comments, which we synthesized using thematic analysis in this current study. Results: Major themes that emerged were: (1) Active student participation to identify research opportunities and interested mentors are needed; (2) Types of research involvement; (3) Uncertainty whether research training translates into useable skills; (4) Desire for a formalized research curriculum and centralization of research opportunities across campuses. Conclusion: Programs should stress to interested students the importance of actively looking for research opportunities and consider both large and small-group educational sessions.
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