Feedback data sources that inform physician self-assessment

Abstract

Background: Self-assessment is a process of interpreting data about one's performance and comparing it to explicit or implicit standards. Aim: To examine the external data sources physicians used to monitor themselves. Methods: Focus groups were conducted with physicians who participated in three practice improvement activities: a multisource feedback program; a program providing patient and chart audit data; and practice-based learning groups. We used grounded theory strategies to understand the external sources that stimulated self-assessment and how they worked. Results: Data from seven focus groups (49 physicians) were analyzed. Physicians used information from structured programs, other educational activities, professional colleagues, and patients. Data were of varying quality, often from non-formal sources with implicit (not explicit) standards. Mandatory programs elicited variable responses, whereas data and activities the physicians selected themselves were more likely to be accepted. Physicians used the information to create a reference point against which they could weigh their performance using it variably depending on their personal interpretation of its accuracy, application, and utility. Conclusions: Physicians use and interpret data and standards of varying quality to inform self-assessment. Physicians may benefit from regular and routine feedback and guidance on how to seek out data for self-assessment.

Practicing Physicians' Needs for Assessment and Feedback as Part of Professional Development

“…13,[22][23][24][25][26][27] Particularly useful is the iterative self-directed learning cycle proposed by Knowles 13 and the evidence outlining the process of and factors that influence the accessing and responding to external data to inform one's self-assessment. 22 From these is proposed a 4-step process for enabling the use of assessment and feedback for CPD : (1) accessing and receiving the data, (2) engaging with the data, (3) using the data to plan and implement a response, and (4) measuring the outcome of that response.…”

“…But physicians also acquire assessment and feedback data daily in informal ways from multiple sources, for example, from patients, colleagues, coworkers, educational events, students, and residents. 1,6,23 The internal self is also a source of assessment data, for example, being mindful and aware when one is feeling anxious or uncertain. 33 In summary, consciously accessing and receiving data from external sources is central to physicians' assessment, as 1.…”

“…21 Hence, physicians, as do most people, require external data and feedback to inform their performance self-assessment to provide a more realistic view of how they're doing. 22,23 Good self-directed learners actively seek out external data to calibrate their own assessments of how they're doing. 24 Nicol and McFarlane-Dick suggest that self-directed learners make better use of external feedback, and that the development of self-regulation skills needs to exist as a complement to external feedback.…”

Residents' narrative feedback on teaching performance of clinical teachers: analysis of the content and phrasing of suggestions for improvement

“…In many continuing professional development strategies, feedback can serve as a starting point to identify possible areas for performance improvement 3 4. Whether feedback is helpful in identifying areas for teaching performance improvement depends on whether the feedback contains valuable information.…”

A New Tool To Give Hospitalists Feedback To Improve Interprofessional Teamwork And Advance Patient Care

“…Recipients of multisource feedback of this type often require time, guidance, and peer support to integrate the feedback on their own performance. [22][23][24][25][26] We created a structured framework for a physician to use in analyzing his or her feedback with at least one other person. Doing so requires the physician to share performance data with at least one other person familiar with his or her practice context, and perhaps with the entire team.…”