1996 Joseph E. Whitley, MD, Award. Evaluation of an introductory course in chest radiology

The author developed and evaluated the effectiveness of an educational program for teaching the fundamentals of chest radiology to radiology residents.

Nineteen radiology residents completed a course that consisted of 17 1-hour chest radiology conferences. All seven 1st-year radiology residents were required to attend every conference; more senior-level residents were encouraged to attend, but their attendance was not mandatory. All conferences were given by the same instructor with the use of a didactic slide and radiograph presentation, videotape, heart-lung model, and a 120-page syllabus. Residents were encouraged to participate in a daily quiz. Resident learning was measured by means of a pre- and postcourse examination.

Conference attendance rate was 93% for 1st-year residents and 75% for more senior residents. Nineteen residents took both the pre- and postcourse examination; mean scores increased from 65.6% to 86.2% (P < .0001), and course evaluation scores were very positive (means ranged from 1.0 to 1.1, with 1 = very good and 5 = poor).

An educational program in chest radiology was developed for residents. Both objective and subjective evaluations indicated that resident participation in the introductory chest course was an effective means of learning the basics of chest radiology. The residents were in support of making this course a required part of the residency curriculum.