The PAPERs Podcast

#55 The Toll of the Trolls Join the PAPERs Podcast team as they dissect a groundbreaking study on professional identity formation (PIF) in surgical residency.  Discover how specific "role model moments" shape the development of surgical residents, influencing their personal and professional identities in profound ways. Our expert hosts dive into the emotional impact of both positive and negative e...

Sample size is a crucial aspect of research design, particularly in experimental studies. It influences the reliability and validity of the study outcomes. Here, Lara and Jon will break down some key concepts and methods related to determining and calculating sample size, power analysis and practical implications.  Episode hosts: Jonathan Sherbino and Lara Varpio You find notes and references in t...

#53 - No free lunch v. I’m in debt and hungry: The Debate on Industry and Education.  The episode highlights that a resident's specialty and the type of training institution, might just tip the scales on whether they snag a free lunch from the big pharma. Jon presents a thought-provoking paper from JAMA that explores the financial connections between residents and the pharmaceutical industry, rais...

Join us as we explore the flip side of the coin, shedding light on what truly brings us happiness and fulfillment at work. Discover insights from the PERMA model and uncover strategies for cultivating joy in your own professional journey. It's time to shift the focus from despair to wellness.  Episode host: Linda Snell Episode notes on the webpage Episode article: Lagina, M., Grum, C., Sandhu, G.,...

Can the calls for evidence-based improvement in HPE be answered by big national datasets? Do we know what works in HPE/meded? Does our training “work”? Is one institution or curriculum better than another? What does “better” mean anyway? Follow this discussion lead by Jason R. Frank that has taken on an article that analyse how datapoints from graduate medical education might be able to improve th...

This Very Variability: Supervisor Practice Differences and Clinical Learning What do learners think when their supervisors do things differently? This paper provides an answer and introduces Variability Theory. Episode host : Jason R. Frank Links and episode notes available on the webpage Episode article Mithoowani, S., Khattak, S., Lieberman, S., Tseng, E. K., Zeller, M. P., & van Merriënboer...

This episode offers an exploration of silence in education, challenging traditional notions of verbal dominance in the classroom. By examining silence as a positive pedagogical tool, it provides insights into fostering student agency and engagement. Educators will gain practical strategies for creating an inclusive learning environment that respects the diverse ways in which students process and e...

This episode delves into the challenges faced by healthcare professionals within the UK's National Health Service (NHS), focusing on the inflexibility of training pathways. The paper uncovers themes of rigid career advancement, limited work-life balance, and systemic barriers hindering diversity. By offering real-world perspectives, it sheds light on the urgent need for reform in medical education...

We at PAPERs Podcast hope that you all hare having happy holidays. We are having two weeks off and would like to present one of the top downloaded episodes we have.  This is one of the " Methods Conslut " that Lara Varpio holds, where she dig a bit deeper into the some of the science methods and theory in Health professions education. This specific Methods Consult explores thematic analysis , a fu...

We at PAPERs Podcast hope that you all hare having happy holidays. We are having two weeks off and would like to present thevery first episode that we aired over a year ago.  In this first episode Jon presents a South African article that via a curriculum analysis investigates in what ammoung helath advocacy was taught and assessed at health professions programmes at a SA university.  The host tea...

We have a personal identity. And a professional identity, or perhaps a few. And possibly a teacher identity. So, can we also have an identity as a faculty developer? And do we need one? How does it evolve… and how can we foster its development?  Episode host: Linda Snell Kiesow, C. W., Mount, G. R., Bunin, J., McMains, K. C., McFate, T., Hartzell, J., & Servey, J. T. (2024). A Common Trajector...

Listening to this episode would provide valuable insights into competency-based medical education (CBME) and the complexities surrounding it. The hosts discuss a paper that reports on the conversations in the literature about CBME. The history of those conversations and what they hold for the future of CBME is highlighted. Episode host : Lara Varpio Links and episode notes available on the webpage...

Getting In to Medical School: What Counts? And Why? Medical school admission is a complex process.  But what is a driver of these processes? This study explores the implicit and explicit values of Canadian medical schools about what and how (and how to monitor) an admission system runs.  Episode host: Jonathan Sherbino Episode article Young, M. E., Shankar, S., & St-Onge, C. (2023). An explora...

Use of social and digital media is under recognized as an academic activity, and generally work in this area does not ‘count’ towards academic advancement … yet. How does one measure the quantity and quality of these activities as scholarship? Listen in on this week's episode where we discuss a framework for "measuring" Social end Digital Media contributions in your academic career. Episode host:...

To thrive, every academic community strives for greater knowledge dissemination and translation. Can HPE succeed on social media using a hashtag like #meded? These authors rated tweets using knowledge translation criteria, and the results were surprising. Episode host: Jason Frank Episode article: Giroux, C. M., Maggio, L. A., Saldanha, C., Bussières, A., & Thomas, A. (2023). Twitter as a Mech...

WHY are these MHPE program so popular? In this episode, the hosts discuss the explosion of Master’s in Health Professions Education programs around the world. They discuss a paper reporting on the goals of these programs, the expectations Directors have of the graduates, and future directions. Episode host: Lara Varpio Episode notes on the website Episode article: Tekian, A., Dekhtyar, M., & P...

Is a competency-based approach to health professions education compatible with professional identity formation? These authors say no and offer some remedies. But is their premise based on misunderstandings? Episode host: Jason Frank Episode article: Sternszus, R., Slattery, N. K., Cruess, R. L., Cate, O. ten, Hamstra, S. J., & Steinert, Y. (2023). Contradictions and Opportunities: Reconciling...

Feedback convention (dogma?) suggests that it should be given immediately. This episode examines that premise. Via an elegant experiment, the authors examine the effect of feedback on learning and the optimal timing of feedback. Spoiler alert: it’s an experiment, so you’ll need to squint/stretch to see how/if the findings change your teaching practice. Episode host Jonathan Sherbino Episode articl...

The 3Ms Do you depend on your phone? In this episode, the papers podcast team reviews a paper that explores media multitasking among medical students. The paper applies a theory-based approach to understand the beliefs and factors that influence multitasking behavior and its impact on academic performance. The team discusses the strengths and weaknesses of the paper, the use of theory and methods,...

My best mistake In today’s episode, the hosts discuss a paper about the medical errors committed by physicians—their triggers, the topics they reflect in relation to those errors, and what lessons they take away from those error experiences. While that is the topic of the paper, the hosts debate several points in the paper—not the least of which being: What can you do when your research data are a...

Open access on-line education resources are the fast growing segment of educational tools. As this grassroots phenomenon approaches metaphorical middle age, what are the best practices for the development and implementation of blogs, podcasts, inforgraphics etc. This episode helps synthesize the evidence for developers. Episode Host: Jonathan Sherbino Episode article Khalid, F., Wu, M., Ting, D. K...

How can organizations support the development of Clinical Educator Identity? In this episode of PAPERS Podcast, the hosts review a recent study that explores the factors affecting Clinical Educator Identity Formation and provides guidance on how organizations can support its development, maintenance, and advancement. How do we get to be who we are as educators? What are the enablers and barriers?...

It’s our annual infamous Holiday Episode, where we find the quirkiest papers in health professions education! These are the papers that we couldn’t resist talking about, even if they’re not the most rigorous or relevant to our practice. These are the papers that will make you say “Wow, I can’t believe this got into the literature!” We like to have some fun and celebrate the diversity and creativit...

Welcome to the special episode of our podcast, where we showcase the work of early career scholars in health professions education from around the world. This is part two of a two-part series, where we will hear from three different researchers who have been nominated by colleagues to share their projects and insights with us In this episode, we will learn about the diverse topics and methods that...

In response to a listener request, Lara describes the differences between conceptual frameworks, theory, and theoretical frameworks. Host: Lara Varpio Episode page is especially helpful this week since all the figures are in there. Episode article for reference: Varpio, L., Paradis, E., Uijtdehaage, S., & Young, M. (2020). The Distinctions Between Theory, Theoretical Framework, and Conceptual...