Teaching Self-directed Learning Skills Through a Resident-Led Milestones Process.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Graduate Medical Education
• Competency-Based Assessment

Background:

• The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education permits adaptable resident roles in Milestone assessments.
• The University of Utah Family Medicine Residency initiated a resident-led Milestone process to foster self-assessment and learning autonomy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness and perceptions of a resident-led Milestone assessment process.
• To determine if this process enhances self-assessment skills and resident engagement.

Main Methods:

• Residents self-assessed competencies using provided evaluation data, with advisor input.
• Residents presented self-assessments to the Clinical Competency Committee for final scoring.
• A survey assessed resident and faculty perceptions of the process.

Main Results:

• High resident agreement that the process supported self-assessment and accurately reflected performance.
• Low reported stress levels associated with the resident-led meetings.
• Faculty perceptions were similar to residents but generally scored lower.

Conclusions:

• The resident-led Milestone process actively engages residents in self-assessment.
• Both residents and faculty perceive the process as accurate and low-stress.
• This approach may improve residents' understanding of learning needs and self-directed learning.