Changes in residents' self-assessed competences during a two-year family practice program

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Family Medicine
• Residency Training

Background:

• Clinical confidence is crucial for resident physicians.
• Understanding factors influencing confidence development is essential for effective training programs.
• The impact of initial training site on resident confidence is not well-established.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare changes in self-assessed clinical confidence in family practice residents over a two-year period.
• To investigate whether the initial training site (family practice center vs. hospital) influences confidence development.
• To assess confidence changes at multiple time points throughout residency.

Main Methods:

• Forty-two entering family practice residents participated in a two-year study.
• Self-assessed confidence was measured using questionnaires across 19 topic areas at baseline and 12, 24 months.
• Residents rotated between center and hospital sites every six months; initial site assignment was nonrandom.

Main Results:

• No significant difference in overall clinical confidence was observed between groups at any time point.
• Minor, transient differences in confidence were noted at six and 12 months, favoring the center-start group.
• Both groups demonstrated substantial increases in confidence over the two-year residency.

Conclusions:

• The initial site of family practice residency training does not appear to significantly affect long-term clinical confidence.
• Differences observed early in training resolved after residents experienced both settings.
• Training curricula should ensure exposure to diverse clinical environments to foster comprehensive resident development.