Open AccessConfidence and knowledge in emergency management among medical students across Colombia: A role for the WHO basic emergency care course
Author(s) -
Katelyn Moretti,
Adam R. Aluisio,
Benjamin Gallo Marin,
Chuan-Jay Jeffrey Chen,
Catalina González Marqués,
Francesca L. Beaudoin,
Melissa A. Clark,
Andrés Patiño,
Heidy Carranza,
Andrés Duarte,
Atilio Moreno,
Leonar G. Aguiar,
Christian Arbelaez
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0262282
Subject(s) - confidence interval , curriculum , medicine , emergency department , demographics , health care , family medicine , emergency medicine , medical emergency , psychology , nursing , demography , pedagogy , sociology , economics , economic growth
Globally, medical students have demonstrated knowledge gaps in emergency care and acute stabilization. In Colombia, new graduates provide care for vulnerable populations. The World Health Organization (WHO) Basic Emergency Care (BEC) course trains frontline providers with limited resources in the management of acute illness and injury. While this course may serve medical students as adjunct to current curriculum, its utility in this learner group has not been investigated. This study performs a baseline assessment of knowledge and confidence in emergency management taught in the BEC amongst medical students in Colombia. Methods A validated, cross-sectional survey assessing knowledge and confidence of emergency care congruent with BEC content was electronically administered to graduating medical students across Colombia. Knowledge was evaluated via 15 multiple choice questions and confidence via 13 questions using 100 mm visual analog scales. Mean knowledge and confidence scores were compared across demographics, geography and prior training using Chi-Squared or one-way ANOVA analyses. Results Data were gathered from 468 graduating medical students at 36 institutions. The mean knowledge score was 59.9% ± 23% (95% CI 57.8–62.0%); the mean confidence score was 59.6 mm ±16.7 mm (95% CI 58.1–61.2). Increasing knowledge and confidence scores were associated with prior completion of emergency management training courses (p<0.0001). Conclusion Knowledge and confidence levels of emergency care management for graduating medical students across Colombia demonstrated room for additional, specialized training. Higher scores were seen in groups that had completed emergency care courses. Implementation of the BEC as an adjunct to current curriculum may serve a valuable addition.