Minutes

WVRHEP Evaluation Committee

September 15, 2003

Members Present: Helen Baker, Jodie Jackson (Co-chair), Judy Koehler, Debra Riggs, Ken Shannon, Sonnie Strader, Sheryll Tennant

Members Absent: Mike McCarthy

Jodie Jackson presented the potential problem of confidentiality with reporting open-ended comments quarterly by discipline and consortium through distribution of the following two reports

1) Number of Student Rotations by consortium & discipline 4/1/03 – 6/30/03

2) Number of Student Rotations by consortium & discipline 1/1/03 – 6/30/03

The number of student rotations, when identified by consortium and discipline, is often low enough to potentially make the student identifiable. Since IRB and good evaluation practice require the utmost care in protecting confidentiality, Jodie reported that the following changes will be implemented to protect the confidentiality of SERFE open-ended responses:

• Open-ended responses will be reported every six months (instead of every 3 months) by discipline AND consortia when the consortium has 4 or more rotations per discipline. For disciplines with <4 rotations, data will be reported to consortia as “miscellaneous disciplines”
• Jodie will continue to personally review all open-ended responses every 3 months, however, and report any unusual comments to April and Hilda.

Bar chart analysis on close-ended responses will be distributed every 6 months per usual.

Jodie reported that an email was sent to all RHEP students on September 8 to notify them that a drawing for $250 prizes for students who have completed all requested evaluation forms would be held September 22, thereby giving students an opportunity to complete all outstanding evaluations before September 22.

The change of the annual drawing date for the $250 prizes was discussed (fall versus spring). The drawing is currently conducted in early fall. No change will be made at this time.

Jodie reported that IRB approval for the addition of the AHEC questions to the SERFE was obtained from the WVU IRB on August 26. AHEC questions will only be seen by those students who have been checked as AHEC in TRACKER. IRB approval for these additional questions has now been sought from WVSOM and MU.

Ken Shannon, MD, PhD presented an analysis of RHEP Evaluation data from responses for the time period, 1/01 – 9/02, that included 1,024 student-responses (533 medical student-responses). His report included the following:

1. selected factors associated with students having a positive view of the “Overall Quality of the Rotation”:

• Reporting a positive quality of the interdisciplinary sessions

• Reporting a positive educational value of the community service project

• Reporting an interest in rural health

• Reporting increased frequency of seeing patients before preceptor

2. selected factors associated with students reporting an “Interest in Rural Health” (all disciplines):

• Reporting an increased frequency of attending community social activities

• Attributing value to the importance of becoming an active part of the community

• Reporting an interest in practicing in a smaller town after training

3. selected factors associated with medical students reporting an “Interest in Rural Health”:

• Reporting a positive “Overall quality of rotation”

• Attributing value to the importance of becoming an active part of the community

• Reporting an interest in practicing in a smaller town after training

• Reporting increased frequency of participation in educational session led by practitioner of another discipline

4. Selected Factors associated with “Confidence in Working Collaboratively”:

¨ More frequent meeting with local health care workers in other disciplines

¨ More frequent consultation with practitioner in another discipline

Erin Condo presented analysis of her Qualitative Research on RHEP.