Background:The Department of Pediatrics, Prince of Songkla University (PSU) with 7-10 pediatric residents per year has implied a 360-degree evaluating instrument for residency training since 2007. Objective: We determined the competency ratings of pediatric residents during their training. Methods: During 2007During -2011 pediatric residents finished the pediatric residency program. At each ward rotation, each pediatric resident was rated for competency skills by four different categories of raters: attending staff, nurses, medical students, and the patients' parents. The average score of each competency given by each category of raters was calculated, and was compared to scores of multiple-choice questions (MCQ) and constructed response questions (CRQ) of Thai Board of Pediatric Examination. Results:The mean overall scores of each resident rated by the attending staff, nurses, medical students, and patients' parents increased with year of residency training. The mean overall scores of each resident rated by attending physicians were positively correlated with the MCQ (r = 0.42, p = 0.04) and CRQ (r = 0.71, p < 0.001) scores of the Thai Board of Pediatrics Examination. Conclusion:The 360-degree assessments with ratings by attending physicians during the pediatric training are reliable for assessment the medical knowledge of the residents.

Background:The Royal College of Pediatricians of Thailand requires that all its residents complete a full thesis before their final Thai Pediatric Board Examination. The Department of Pediatrics of the Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University (PSU) has been certified for pediatric residency training since 1985. Objectives: To determine the number of articles published in medical journals that are based on the theses of residents during 25 years of pediatric resident training, and how long after finishing their residency training the articles were published. Methods: Medical journal databases were searched for the names of former pediatric residents. The faculty staff who had supervised them during their training were asked to confirm whether the residents had published their work. Results: During the 25 years (1988-2012), we found records of 34 articles based on the theses of 130 residents published in a medical journal (26%). In the early phase (1988)(1989)(1990)(1991)(1992)(1993)(1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002), 15 articles from 67 theses (22%) were published: 10 (67%) in Thai or regional English language journals, and 5 (33%) in international peer-reviewed journals. In the second phase (2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012), 19 articles from 63 theses (30%) were published: 6 (32%) in regional English language journals, and 13 (68%) in peer-reviewed international journals. Conclusions:The publication rate of PSU pediatric residency research theses during the 25 years was 26%. We recommend that our faculty devote more time to ensuring supervision of the thesis writing component of the residency training to increase the publication rate of research theses by our residents.

Objectives: To compare the work performance of 2004-2013 Prince of Songkla University (PSU) pediatric residencytraining graduates as evaluated by their workplace directors and the graduates self-evaluation.Material and Method: All 78 pediatric graduates from PSU 2004-2013 were located: 52 (66.7%) were in the publicsector and 26 (33.3%) in the private sector. Ten-item performance evaluation questionnaires were sent to both thegraduates and their workplace directors. A rubric scale was used for rating each item from 1 to 10 (1=very poor, 10=excellent). The workplace director was asked to give an open answer for one “outstanding performance” item of the graduates and suggest one “performance that should be improved” item.Results: Forty-five directors (57.7%) and 63 graduates (80.8%) returned their questionnaires. The workplace directors rated the PSU graduates more favorably than the graduates’ self-evaluations in 8 of the 10 items, but without significant differences. The average overall scores for professional performance by both the directors and the graduates were over 8.00, with the highest ratings in ethics/morals in medical care (directors 9.11±0.88 and graduates 9.01±0.92), and the lowest ratings for “concerns in health economics” (directors 8.37±0.93 and graduates 8.04±0.97).Conclusion: Most of our pediatric graduates have achieved career success as most of them were rated by theirdirectors as showing very good performance in their workplaces. The workplace directors tended to rate the PSUgraduates slightly more favorably than the graduates’ own self-evaluations.