Clerkship site and duration: do they influence student performance?

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training
• Student Performance Evaluation

Background:

• The surgical clerkship at the State University of New York at Stony Brook transitioned from a 6-week to a 12-week program in 1979.
• Students were distributed across various clinical sites, including university, veterans administration, voluntary, and county hospitals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of surgical clerkship duration on medical student performance.
• To determine if the length of the clinical rotation influences student outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective study analyzing student performance data.
• Comparison of student scores between 6-week and 12-week clerkship programs.
• Analysis of performance metrics including National Board examinations, oral examinations, and clinical evaluations.
• Statistical analysis to assess differences across clinical campuses and correlations between assessment types.

Main Results:

• Students in the 12-week surgical clerkship achieved significantly higher scores on National Board examinations, oral examinations, and clinical performance evaluations compared to those in the 6-week program.
• No significant differences in student performance were observed among the various clinical campuses.
• Positive correlations were identified between National Board scores, oral examination scores, and clinical performance grades.

Conclusions:

• Extending the duration of the surgical clerkship program positively impacts medical student performance.
• The length of the clerkship is a more critical factor in student success than the specific clinical site.
• The findings support longer clinical rotations for improved surgical education and student outcomes.