Performance indicators for assessing competencies of preventive medicine residents.

Full Abstract

Heightened national interest in population-based medicine, clinical preventive services, and health care management underscores the current need for definition and assessment of physician competency in these areas. This article describes a project sponsored by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to develop competencies for each of the three specialty areas in preventive medicine and appropriate measures for the achievement of those competencies. We discuss fundamental issues surrounding assessment that helped guide the process, types of measurement strategies, and criteria for effective competencies and performance indicators. The article also explains the Work Group process used to reach consensus and identifies concerns and challenges raised during this process. We include the list of specialty competencies and performance indicators developed by the project. The project, entitled "Improving Training of Preventive Medicine Residents through the Development and Evaluation of Competencies," served as a model for interorganizational collaboration between the federal government (HRSA); a specialty society, the American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM); and a preventive medicine residency program, State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook. The commonality of competencies expected of residents in all three specialty areas of preventive medicine--occupational medicine, general preventive medicine and public health, and aerospace medicine--reaffirmed the rationale for including all of these areas within the single specialty of preventive medicine.

Author information

Author/s: Lane, D S (DS); Ross, V (V); Parkinson, M D (MD); Chen, D W (DW);

Affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine, SUNY at Stony Brook 11794-8036, USA.

Grants: HRSA 92-468(P) (Agency:NHLBI NIH HHS)

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

Journal: American journal of preventive medicine (Am J Prev Med), published in UNITED STATES. (Language: eng)

Reference: -1995 Jan-Feb; vol 11 (issue 1) : pp 1-8

Dates: Created 1995/06/22; Completed 1995/06/22; Revised 2007/11/14;

PMID: 7748581, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

Comments and Corrections

CommentIn: Am J Prev Med. 1995 Jan-Feb;11(1):71-2. (PMID: 7748590)

CommentIn: Am J Prev Med. 1995 Sep-Oct;11(5):349. (PMID: 8573367)

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