Establishing Consensus on the Most Important Teaching Skills for Internal Medicine Residents in Clinician Educator Tracks: A Modified Delphi Study.

Abstract

Purpose: Internal medicine (IM) residency programs with clinician educator tracks (CETs) have increased during the past decade; however, no standardized list of learning domains and competencies exist. The authors use a modified Delphi approach to determine a consensus set of teaching skills for IM CET residents.

Method: A CET teaching skills list was developed from June to August 2023 via a PubMed search through July 31, 2023, by University of Pittsburgh faculty physicians. Seventy-seven potential participants were identified through professional society listservs and publications. Between January and February 2024, participants (current or former CET directors within an IM residency program) iteratively ranked teaching skills based on importance for IM CET residents from 1 (less important) to 4 (most important) for 2 online surveys. Consensus was defined a priori as 80% agreement or higher that a skill is important or most important. Participants identified the most appropriate training level for each skill and the most critical teaching skills for CET residents.

Results: Forty-one experts participated, with 31 (76%) completing both surveys. Of the 29 teaching skills in round 1, 12 achieved consensus as important. In round 2 (24 teaching skills), 5 additional teaching skills achieved consensus as important. Panelists ranked the most critical teaching skills for CET residents: teaching in different settings, communicating feedback, fostering a conducive learning climate, teaching across different learner levels, creating learning goals and objectives, and developing and delivering effective chalk talks.

Conclusions: This study offers national consensus on a prioritized list of teaching skills for IM CET residents. Consensus skills were foundational and intentional, important for all deliberate educators, and aligned with 2 CE milestone subcompetencies (universal pillars and educational theory and practice). Nonconsensus skills were generally more advanced. Current and aspiring CET leadership can leverage these recommendations to develop and critically appraise CET curricula.