ORAL PRESENTATION

An Instructional Video to Teach Oral Presentation in Inpatient Pediatrics

Anand K. Sekaran, MD. University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Hartford, CT

Background: The oral presentation of a patient on rounds is an important skill. Information needs to be communicated to the team with accuracy and efficiency. Students have little experience in this skill prior to their clinical rotations. An instructional video was created to help students learn to present effectively in the inpatient pediatric setting.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of an instructional video in teaching oral presentation to third-year medical students during the inpatient pediatric clerkship.

Methods: The 12-minute video consists of three medical students modeling a full oral presentation with commentary from a faculty narrator. Students entering the 2-week inpatient pediatric clerkship will be randomized to two groups. One group (study group) will observe the instructional video plus receive routine instruction regarding inpatient oral presentation. The second group (control group) will only receive routine instruction. Students in both groups will be videotaped giving an oral presentation during their inpatient pediatric clerkship. A standardized form scored by two blinded reviewers will be used to evaluate oral presentations in the two groups.

Results: Preliminary results comparing student performance will be available at the time of the presentation. Our instructional video (in CD-ROM form) and oral presentation evaluation form will also be presented.

Conclusions: Evaluation of the teaching tool is in progress. The instructional video has the potential to aid in the teaching of oral presentation in inpatient pediatrics.