The influence of vignettes on EKG interpretation by third-year students

Accuracy of general practitioners’ readings of ECG in primary care

“…It is known that the knowledge of the clinical data may increase accuracy of readings up to 25% [17][18][19]. As reports are usually recorded directly on the patient's electronic clinical file, integration with medical history is possible, and accuracy of readings may thereby be improved.…”

The effect of clinical history on accuracy of electrocardiograph interpretation among doctors working in emergency departments

“…18 The strengths of this study include the blinded assessment of the ECG responses to minimise misclassification bias, the good inter-rater agreement, and the randomisation of ECGs within each pack to minimise the effect of learning bias. In contrast to previous similar studies, [7][8][9][10][11] this was a multicentre study with a specific focus on the effect of clinical history and cognitive bias in the ED setting.…”

“…[6][7][8][9][10][11] A systematic review of the interpretation of radiology and pathology test results has shown that adding clinical history is associated with improved diagnostic accuracy. 6 Some studies of ECG interpretation have shown that providing a clinical history or vignette has no significant effect on diagnostic accuracy, 10,11 but others have shown that history suggestive of the correct diagnosis increases diagnostic accuracy and misleading history decreases diagnostic accuracy. [7][8][9] We aimed to determine whether bias in the clinical history affects the accuracy of ECG interpretation by ED doctors.…”

Training and Assessment of ECG Interpretation Skills: Results From the 2005 CDIM Survey

“…Skills and confidence in 3rd-year students are poor, but directed interventions have been shown to improve medical student performance. [6][7][8]10 Further study appears needed to determine the best instruction methods during clinical care as well as the appropriate exposure time, particularly given current residency work-hour restrictions. In the interim, innovative teaching methods using computer-based instruction can be used to augment both formal and informal instruction.…”

“…2 In fact, the current literature focuses only on instruction and assessment of ECG skills in students at single institutions for finite periods. [6][7][8][9][10] Likewise, the focus of these interventions was typically on an isolated clerkship without integrating instruction that occurs on other clinical clerkships or building upon concepts taught in the preclinical curriculum. This may be in part because of a lack of national standards in both knowledge acquisition and assessment methodology.…”