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How doctors learn: physicians' self-directed learning episodes.

¹Department of Neuroscience, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks 58202-9037, USA.

Academic Medicine : Journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges

|October 28, 1999

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Physicians engage in self-directed learning through distinct stages, triggered by specific problems. This research offers insights into medical education and continuing professional development for doctors.

Area of Science:

Medical Education
Continuing Professional Development
Physician Learning

Background:

Understanding how physicians learn is crucial for effective medical education.
Existing research highlights problem-driven learning in clinical practice.

Purpose of the Study:

To qualitatively examine the self-directed learning activities of physicians.
To integrate and elaborate a theory of learning in clinical practice.

Main Methods:

Elicited narratives of past learning experiences from 32 physicians.
Analyzed narratives to identify themes in physician learning approaches.
Examined identified themes in the context of existing literature.

Main Results:

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Confirmed that specific and general problems precipitate physician learning.
Identified definite stages in learning episodes: scanning for problems, deciding to learn, acquiring knowledge, and gaining experience.
Expanded upon previously described learning stages.

Conclusions:

Developed an integrated theory of learning in clinical practice.
Identified implications for educating physicians in training and continuing professional development.
Highlighted areas for improvement in teaching medical students and residents self-directed learning and in aligning continuing medical education with physician needs.