Teaching Procedural Skills: Integrating Educational Theory Into Practice

Teaching procedural skills is an essential part of health professions education, yet formal training is often lacking from traditional curricula.

A workshop on teaching procedural skills was developed as part of a clinician educator track at a large health professions university. Participants included medical residents and fellows (postgraduate years 2-6) from various training programs. The 90-minute, interactive training integrated Gagne's model of instructional design with evidence-based teaching practices. Workshop outcomes were evaluated with pre- and postworkshop surveys. Learner reactions (Kirkpatrick level 1) were assessed via course evaluation. Learning and behavior (Kirkpatrick level 2) were evaluated via attitudinal and knowledge-based questions. Data were collected from three cohorts of participants (2022-2024). Responses were analyzed by paired t test.

Residents and fellows from 11 different disciplines participated in the workshops. The survey response rate was 30 out of 35 (86%). Course evaluations were positive for all six questions (mean scores: 4.8-5.0 on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree]). Postworkshop scores improved significantly for all five attitudinal questions, including "I can apply instructional design theory when teaching procedural skills" (pre: 2.2 vs. post: 4.3 on a 5-point scale, p < .01). The number of participants correctly answering the knowledge-based questions also increased following the workshop.

A workshop focused on evidence-based teaching of procedural skills was well reviewed and improved participants' attitudes and knowledge. Strengths of the workshop include its appeal to a broad range of medical trainees, integration of educational theory, and interactive design.