PRESCRIBING COMPETENCY OF MEDICAL STUDENTS: NATIONAL SURVEY OF MEDICAL EDUCATION LEADERS

摘要

Evidence suggests that newly licensed physicians are not adequately prepared to prescribe medications safely. There is currently no national pre-licensure prescribing competency assessment required in North America. This study's purpose was to survey Canadian medical school leaders for their interest in and perceived need for a nation-wide prescribing assessment for final year medical students. Method In spring of 2015, surveys were disseminated online to medical education leaders in all 17 Canadian medi- cal schools. The survey included questions on perceived medication prescribing competency in medical schools, and interest in integration of a national assessment into medical school curricula and licensing. Results 372 (34.6 %) faculty from all 17 Canadian medical schools responded. 277 (74.5%) respondents were residency directors, 33 (8.9%) vice deans of medical education or equivalent, and 62 (16.7%) clerkship coordinators. Faculty judged 23.4% (SD 22.9%) of their own graduates' prescribing knowledge to be un- satisfactory and 131 (44.8%) felt obligated to provide close supervision to more than a third of their new residents due to prescribing concerns. 239 (73.0%) believed that an assessment process would improve their graduates' quality, 262 (80.4%) thought it should be incorporated into their medical school curriculaand 248 (76.0%) into the national licensing process. Except in regards to close supervision due to con-cerns, there were no significant differences between schools' responses.ConclusionsAmongst Canadian medical school leadership, there is a perceived inadequacy in medical student prescrib-ing competency as well as support for a standardized prescribing competency assessment in curricula andlicensing processes.