The effect of monthly resident reflection on achieving rotation goals

Background: Reflection is a learning tool increasingly being used in medical education. It has not been well studied as a method of communicating resident rotation goals and objectives. Purpose: The purpose was to study the effect of monthly resident reflection on achieving curriculum goals. Methods: During the first half of the 2005-06 academic year, obstetrics/gynecology residents at a community hospital received curriculum goals in a traditional written manner. During the second 6 months, the same trainees underwent 1-hr monthly structured reflection sessions on the rotation goals and objectives. Results: Sixteen residents were studied. Compared to control, residents reported the rotation goals as better defined during reflection months. More trainees rated reflection as more valuable than the didactic time it replaced. All 16 residents documented more cumulative procedures in the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education operative log Web site during reflection months for each of the three major categories; there was a mean increased number of procedures logged in Obstetrics (23.1 14.0, p .001), Gynecology (18.3 10.9, p .001), and Primary Care (21.1 23.5, p =.003). Overall, there was a mean of 62.6 32.1 (p .001) more procedures entered during the reflection period, which translated to an 18% increase. Conclusions: Structured monthly reflection may lead to a higher success of achieving rotation goals.