M Scott Stegall | PubMed Health

PubMedDate not supplied

Basic aseptic technique for medical students: Identifying essential entry-level competencies.

PURPOSE: Medical students must be competent in basic aseptic technique (BAT) to function effectively in the operating room. However, a comprehensive literature review revealed a deficit of research in standardized BAT training for the operating room in medical school curricula. METHODS: A modified reactive Delphi technique was used to survey an expert panel of 100 surgical educators. A focus group provided initial responses to key questions, and the panel completed 2 surveys. In the first survey, the panel identified elements for a BAT curriculum for the operating room. In the second survey, the panel received feedback from the first survey and was asked to respond in light of those results. RESULTS: An 81% response rate was obtained from the first survey. A 74% response rate was obtained from the second survey. Seven of the 18 essential entry-level competencies (EELCs) identified were ranked as the most important. The top 5 instructional strategies and the top 3 methods for evaluation were also selected. The panel identified the third-year curriculum as the preferred time of training and a nurse preceptor/educator as the preferred instructor. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide a minimum set of educational objectives that can be used to develop a standardized curriculum in BAT for the operating room for medical students.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Instilling a soul in your organization without losing yours to it.

Health-care professionals are accustomed to struggling with ethical considerations brought about by advances in the medical sciences. How aware are these professionals of the ethical dilemmas created by advances in the management sciences? Deeply embedded in organizational and departmental changes are theories, paradigms, and philosophies that often are understood poorly even by their promoters. Although these system changes can occur at glacial speed, they also can be glacial in their effects on an organization's culture. Are individuals aware that the latest implemented management fad is changing their behaviors? By becoming mindful of the potential ramifications of change, individuals increase their ability to behave in a civil manner--that is, ethically choosing to embrace or resist the change. By acting within their own sphere of influence, civil individuals at all levels of the organization collectively instill a soul in their organization rather than losing their own souls to it. This article is adapted from a commencement speech presented to graduates of an executive health-care administration program. Most of these graduates were a mixture of hospital department heads, middle managers, and a few medical and hospital executives. Each year, I distribute my current version of this teaching note or mini-lecture to students completing my leadership class in hope that it will help them put in perspective the appropriate use of the management sciences they intensely study.

Administrative Personnel↗