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Biomedical subjects

Kerry B Broderick

Publications and source records attributed to Kerry B Broderick.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

The virtual advisor program: linking students to mentors via the world wide web.

BACKGROUND: Emergency medicine (EM) is a popular specialty for medical students choosing a career. Many attend medical schools without an affiliated EM residency and lack both the formal mentorship and informal guidance provided by medical school advisors (or faculty) involved in an accredited EM training program. Others desire specialized advice based on geographic or specific academic interest. OBJECTIVE: The authors describe user characteristics of a Web-based virtual advisor program that paired medical students with EM faculty advisors. METHODS: Prospective users access the system from a link on the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) home page. On the initial visit, demographic information is collected. Faculty and student guidelines are provided. Students desiring individual advice may register for a virtual advisor who can assess career goals and qualifications. Volunteer faculty mentors are assigned on the basis of the student's geographic and demographic preferences and career aspirations. Encounters rely primarily on electronic and/or voice correspondence to suit the needs of the pair. A frequently asked question (FAQ) section provides answers to common questions and does not require registration. RESULTS: Two hundred sixty-four students (183 males, 75 females, 6 unspecified) from North American (87) and international (25) medical schools requested a virtual advisor. One hundred twenty-one faculty advisors from 56 U.S. medical schools participated (86 [71%] males; 35 [29%] females). Students indicated reasons they sought a virtual advisor. Qualitative feedback was generally positive from advisors and advisees. CONCLUSION: The implementation of the virtual advisor program enabled medical students to have access to experienced EM faculty career mentors.

Education, Medical, Undergraduate↗

Mentoring for clinician-educators.

Mentorship has been shown to have a positive impact on academic faculty members in terms of career advancement. The guidance of a mentor has been shown to increase academic outcome measures such as peer-reviewed publications and grant support for junior academic faculty. In addition, career satisfaction of mentored faculty is greater than those with no mentorship. There is little research on the effects of mentorship on the careers of clinician-educators. This group has also been reported to have a lower scholarly productivity rate than the typical research-based faculty. This article addresses the current state of mentorship as it applies specifically to clinician-educators, offers advice on how a potential protégé might seek out a potential mentor, and finally, suggests a possible mentoring system for academic emergency physicians who are focusing on careers in medical education.

Community Networks↗

Emergency physician practices and requirements regarding the medical screening examination of psychiatric patients.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the testing requirements and practices of emergency physicians (EPs) when conducting a medical screening examination of psychiatric patients. METHODS: An anonymous survey was developed and mailed to 500 EPs randomly selected through American College of Emergency Physicians membership rolls. RESULTS: Two hundred ninety surveys were returned (58%). Eighty-five percent of the respondents were male, 70% practiced in a community setting and 28% in an academic setting, 58% were emergency medicine (EM) residency-trained, and 88% were EM board-certified or board-eligible. Ninety-eight percent stated they were actively involved with the psychiatric medical screening exam (PMSE). Routine testing was required by 35% of the respondents, with 16% being required by ED protocol, and 84% by the psychiatrist/psychiatric institute. Of those with required testing, tests required were: complete blood cell count (56%), electrolytes (56%), serum alcohol (85%), serum toxicology screen (31%), urine toxicology screen (86%), electrocardiogram (18%), liver function test (16%), blood urea nitrogen (45%), and creatinine (40%). Many clinicians believed that certain tests were unnecessary as part of a PMSE. There was no statistical difference between the opinions of the physicians required to test and those not required to test in terms of which tests they thought were a necessary part of a PMSE regardless of the patient's clinical presentation. The EM-trained physicians were also found to be significantly less likely to think certain tests were necessary for the PMSE when compared with the non-EM-trained physicians. CONCLUSIONS: Routine testing was required as part of the medical screening examination of psychiatric patients for only one-third of the respondents. Few respondents believed that any of these tests were necessary. Emergency medicine-trained physicians were less likely to feel that routine testing was necessary.

Adult↗