Real-Time Peer-to-Peer Observation and Feedback Lead to Improvement in Oral Presentation Skills

Background Oral case presentation is a vital skill in many fields, particularly in medicine, and is taught early on in medical schools. However, there is a diminished focus on the development of this skill during the clinical years. In this study, we investigated whether the implementation of a formal teaching strategy during the internal medicine clerkship rotation can lead to an improvement in oral presentation skills. Methodology Students received an introductory PowerPoint lecture and saw brief video presentations summarizing the key components of a successful oral presentation. Subsequently, students were asked to evaluate their peers while they presented during morning rounds using a standardized feedback form in the first and the second half of their rotation. Using the information gained from the feedback form, students provided verbal feedback on the quality of oral presentations to their peers. Results A total of 64 students participated in this curriculum at a university-affiliated teaching hospital, and a total of 409 evaluations were completed. The average total score during the first and the second rotation period was 93.0% (standard deviation, SD = 9.8) and 96.9% (SD = 7.1), respectively. Improvement in the total score of 3.7% points was seen in the entire cohort, with an average improvement of 64% (or 1.64 times) in the probability of obtaining a full score during the second rotation. Conclusions Our data show improvement in scores between collection blocks using an educational strategy. This study emphasizes the fact that peer-to-peer evaluations helped in the refinement of oral presentation skills.