Do our newly graduated medical doctors have adequate knowledge about neonatal resuscitation?

Abstract

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Neonatal resuscitation should be part of medical school curriculums. We aimed to evaluate medical school graduates' knowledge of neonatal resuscitation. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional study on the performance of candidates sitting a medical residency exam at Hospital das Clínicas, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, in 2004. METHODS: There were two questions on neonatal resuscitation. One question in the theory test aimed at evaluating basic knowledge on the initial approach towards newly born infants. The question in the practical exam was designed to evaluate the candidate's ability to perform the initial steps of resuscitation and to establish bag-mask ventilation. RESULTS: Out of 642 candidates from 74 medical schools, 151 (23.5%) answered the theory question correctly. Significantly more physicians from public medical schools in the State of São Paulo answered correctly than did those from other schools in Brazil (52.5% versus 9.2%; p < 0.05). A total of 436 candidates did the practical exam. The grades among graduates from medical schools belonging to the State of São Paulo were significantly higher than among those from other schools (5.9 ± 2.6 versus 4.1 ± 2.1; p < 0.001). The grades for the practical question among candidates who had answered the theory question correctly were significantly higher than those obtained by candidates who had given wrong answers (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Medical school graduates' knowledge of neonate resuscitation in the delivery room is quite precarious. Emphasis on neonatal resuscitation training is urgently needed in medical schools.

Assessment of ability of medical and obstetric students to achieve adequate positive pressure ventilation using basic neonatal resuscitation manikins

“…We evaluated student performance at the end of the course, and some students may have learned resuscitation several months before. However, no more than six months had elapsed since the beginning of the course and the performance evaluation; therefore, we can assume a minimum rate of forgetting (9,10) .…”

Assessing competency in neonatal resuscitation among medical students, interns and postgraduate students: a study from a tertiary care hospital in North India

“…5 A study by Paula et al found that the medical school graduates' knowledge in neonatal resuscitation is quite precarious. 6 Afzal et al, in their study found that the skill level of interns, who as medical students had not received any training in newborn resuscitation and basic life support, was significantly less as compared to those who had received such training. 7 With this background, we carried out this study to assess competency in basic neonatal resuscitation among medical students, interns and pediatrics postgraduate students.…”