Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Prescribing Competence of Canadian Medical Graduates: National Survey of Medical School Leaders

Anne Holbrook
* ORCID logo ,
Simran Lohit
,
Oswin Chang
ORCID logo ,
Jiawen Deng
,
Dan Perri
,
Gousia Dhhar
,
Mitch Levine
,
Jill Rudkowski
,
Heather McLeod
,
Kaitlynn Rigg
,
Victoria Telford
,
Anthony Levinson
ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 4 March 2024 / Approved: 5 March 2024 / Online: 5 March 2024 (06:40:31 CET)

How to cite: Holbrook, A.; Lohit, S.; Chang, O.; Deng, J.; Perri, D.; Dhhar, G.; Levine, M.; Rudkowski, J.; McLeod, H.; Rigg, K.; Telford, V.; Levinson, A. Prescribing Competence of Canadian Medical Graduates: National Survey of Medical School Leaders. Preprints 2024, 2024030227. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202403.0227.v1 Holbrook, A.; Lohit, S.; Chang, O.; Deng, J.; Perri, D.; Dhhar, G.; Levine, M.; Rudkowski, J.; McLeod, H.; Rigg, K.; Telford, V.; Levinson, A. Prescribing Competence of Canadian Medical Graduates: National Survey of Medical School Leaders. Preprints 2024, 2024030227. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202403.0227.v1

Abstract

Suboptimal knowledge of clinical pharmacology, therapeutics, and toxicology (CPT) and poor-quality prescribing are threats to patient safety. Our previous national survey of medical faculty identified limited confidence in medical student graduates’ ability to prescribe safely and an interest in a national prescribing competence assessment. Given the in-person challenges posed by the restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, we aimed to re-evaluate opinions and gauge interest in e-learning resources and assessments. Using public sources, a sampling frame of medical school leaders from all 17 Canadian medical schools, including deans, vice-deans, and program directors for clerkship, residency, and e-learning, were invited to participate in a cross-sectional survey. Survey questions were finalized after several rounds of testing and analyses were descriptive.Of 1448 invitations, 411 (28.4%) individuals reviewed the survey, and among them, 278 (67.6%) completed at least one survey question with representation from all schools. While more than 90% of respondents agreed that medical students should meet a minimum standard of prescribing competence, only 17 (7.9%) could vouch for their school meeting objectives in CPT and many had significant concerns about their own or other schools’ recent graduate prescribing abilities. Given the lack of local CPT eCurricula resources, there was strong interest in a national online course and assessment in CPT. Our national survey results suggest an ongoing inadequacy of medical trainees’ prescribing competence and provide a strong endorsement for both a national online CPT course and assessment during medical school.

Keywords

prescribing competency; medical education; survey; Canada; medication safety

Subject

Medicine and Pharmacology, Clinical Medicine

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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