Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Rules Of Engagement: Residents' Perceptions Of The In-Training Evaluation Process, Christopher Watling, Cynthia Kenyon, Elaine Zibrowski, Valerie Schulz, Mark Goldszmidt, Indu Singh, Heather Maddocks, Lorelei Lingard

Lorelei Lingard

BACKGROUND: In-training evaluation reports (ITERs) often fall short of their goals of promoting resident learning and development. Efforts to address this problem through faculty development and assessment-instrument modification have been disappointing. The authors explored residents' experiences and perceptions of the ITER process to gain insight into why the process succeeds or fails.

METHOD: Using a grounded theory approach, semistructured interviews were conducted with 20 residents. Constant comparative analysis for emergent themes was conducted.

RESULTS: All residents identified aspects of "engagement" in the ITER process as the dominant influence on the success of ITERs. Both external (evaluator-driven, such as evaluator credibility) …

The Rhetoric Of Patient Voice: Reported Talk With Patients In Referral And Consultation Letters, Marlee Spafford, Catherine Schryer, Lorelei Lingard

Lorelei Lingard

Referral and consultation letters are written to enable the exchange of patient information and facilitate the trajectory of patients through the healthcare system. Yet, these letters, written about yet apart from patients, also sustain and constrain professional relationships and influence attitudes towards patients. We analysed 35 optometry referral letters and 35 corresponding ophthalmology consultation letters for reported 'patient voice' coded as 'experience' or 'agenda' and we interviewed 15 letter writers (eight optometry students, six optometrists, and one community ophthalmologist). There were 80 instances of reported 'patient voice' in 35 letters. The majority (68%) of the instances occurred in referral letters, …