Must Reads

What is a ‘Must Read’ for those interested in medical education?

Each month, we identify 3-4 noteworthy articles from the health professions education literature and label them as “must reads.” Selection is based on several criteria including originality and methodological rigor. Our process includes a formal search of the peer-reviewed literature, screening titles and abstracts, full text review, and an editorial meeting to achieve consensus.

Who are we and why are we doing this?

Our reviewers include individuals with expertise in teaching, educational oversight, and research as well as those who are beginning their careers as educational scholars.

The volume of health professions education articles has become overwhelming. In curating some of the best new published papers, we hope to make it easier for all of us to keep abreast of cutting edge educational scholarship and practices.

We’d welcome involvement in the selection process. Reviewers can earn CME credit and contribute to Must Reads research. If you are interested in supporting this work or have perspectives to share, please email Sean Tackett: stacket1@jhmi.edu.

You can also follow @MedEdMustReads on X (aka Twitter), follow the must reads page on LinkedIn, and/or sign up to receive an email each month if you want to be updated on new must reads selections.

(Current Reviewers: Mohammad Aldalou, Syed Muhammad Ali, Paul Bain, Elie Dargham, Suni Ebby, Mohammad Kabakibi, Anisha Kshetrapal, Liju Mathew, Amin Nakhostin-Ansari, Aditi Narsinghpura, Ashley Paul, Julianne Perretta, Katherine Senko, Sean Tackett, Scott Wright, Tony Zhu)

Featured This Month

AI-induced never-skilling in medical education
Nature Medicine: Y. Ke, L. Jin, J. C. L. Ong, A. J. Thirunavukarasu, J. Car, C. Y. Cheung, Y. C. Tham, D. S. W. Ting, M. E. H. Ong, S. Compton, A. Narayan, P. A. Keane, T. Y. Wong, D. W. Bates, P. Tan, and N. Liu
The Gist
• Commentary on “never-skilling” – the failure to develop competency and the erosion of metacognitive skills – that can occur with AI over-reliance.
• Summarizes what’s known, suggests gradual AI integration to maintain cognitive friction, and proposes a research agenda.
Why This is a Must Read

Never-skilling may be the greatest threat that AI poses to medical education. This article provides a robust overview and several frameworks that can guide educational program design and research.

How supervisors leverage stress to facilitate trainee learning in clinical settings: A six-element model
Medical Education: J. Beck, K. O'Hara, M. van der Schaaf, and B. C. O'Brien
The Gist
• Interviews of 23 supervising physicians on how they use stress to improve learning.
• Describes 6 elements as (1) setting clear expectations; (2) assessing baseline stress; (3) introducing, (4) monitoring, and (5) modifying stressors; and (6) debriefing.
Why This is a Must Read

Finding the stress sweet spot - where it motivates and challenges learners rather than exhausting or demoralizing them - is not easy to do. This article provides a framework that can help clinical educators optimize stress for learning purposes.

Twelve tips to promote interprofessional workplace learning for medical trainees
Medical Teacher: A. M. Barker, R. E. Stalmeijer, A. W. Konopasky, J. Merkebu, and K. A. Miller
The Gist
• Tips to enhance interprofessional learning based on the Landscapes of Practice theory.
• Provides actionable steps for medical trainees, supervising physicians, other health professionals, and program leaders.
Why This is a Must Read

Teamwork is essential to clinical practice, but interprofessional learning remains challenging. This article’s practical advice could enhance interprofessional understanding and performance.

Featured

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Academic Medicine: M. D. Fishman, M. Muralidharan, S. Cavallaro, S. Schutzman, M. Pusic, and K. Miller
Should do or could do? Exploring how trainees make sense of when supervisors change their proposed clinical approach
The Gist
• Interviews of 16 emergency medicine residents to understand how they deal with supervisor changes to their clinical plans.
• Trainees (1) avoided proposing an independent plan by anticipating supervisor preferences, (2) assumed reasons for supervisor changes, or (3) asked for explanations.
Why This is a Must Read

There are often many good ways to handle a clinical situation, and much can be learned from exploring clinical grey zones. This article reminds us to openly discuss decision-making, and it provides tips to use in practice.

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Journal of Surgical Education: S. Y. Lai, Y. Fan, F. Yao, and S. Zhang
The ABCD of AI-enabled clinical reasoning: A guided framework to transform learner interactions and decision quality
The Gist
• Randomized controlled trial of 72 surgery residents solving 8 clinical cases when given AI with no guidance vs. AI with the ABCD framework (A=articulate clinical information; B=brainstorm/benchmark management options; C=critique AI responses and customize to specific patient contexts; D=decide on recommendations and discuss with patients).
• The ABCD intervention group had greater AI self-efficacy and clinical decision quality.
Why This is a Must Read

AI is everywhere now, but there are few systematic approaches for using AI in medical education and practice. This article provides evidence for a framework that has promise for use in other programs.

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Academic Medicine: L. Chiel, E. Brouwer, M. D. Fishman, L. Lingard, and E. Driessen
“It’s hard not to think of feedback as gossip”: Exploring resident perspectives on the relationship between gossip and feedback
The Gist
• Interviews of 16 residents from 7 programs to understand the relationship between feedback and gossip (i.e., evaluative talk about someone who is not present).
• Gossip could lead to formal feedback, help make sense of feedback that was received, or serve as feedback.
Why This is a Must Read

Talking about others when they’re not around can generate helpful perspectives. This article highlights that gossip should not remain hidden but be applied constructively to improve learning and performance.

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Medical Humanities: J. Bandopadhay
Creativity as a core competency in medical education: The art of medicine
The Gist
• Commentary on creativity as central to medical practice.
• Argues that adaptive learning, managing uncertainty, and moral imagination require creative thinking.
Why This is a Must Read

There is often no single best option in medicine. Creative solutions are needed in everyday clinical practice, and this article offers suggestions for fostering clinical creativity in medical education.

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Academic Medicine: J. E. Adams, A. Neumeier, M. Kiger, S. Jiménez, R. Pierce, T. Lockspeiser, T. Kincaid, and A. Poncelet
Return on investment: A qualitative approach to understanding the value of undergraduate medical education from the perspective of health system and academic leaders
The Gist
• Interviews of 29 leaders from a large U.S. academic medical center to understand perceived value from medical student education.
• Identified value in 5 domains: (1) individual relationships, (2) operational quality, (3) financial returns, (4) societal impacts, and (5) strategic alignment.
Why This is a Must Read

Medical schools invest substantial time and money in medical student education. This article highlights that the upfront financial costs may be justified by other positive influences of medical students.

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Medical Teacher: A. Kehoe, A. Ellawala, D. Karunaratne, P. A. Tiffin, and P. E. S. Crampton
Effective teamwork within healthcare – Let’s finally make it happen! A realist evaluation
The Gist
• Interviews of 72 healthcare workers from 13 professions to characterize the structures, processes, and outcomes of effective teamwork.
• Describes workplace and teammate factors that facilitate or impede multidisciplinary team function.
Why This is a Must Read

Teamwork is vital to patient care in complex health systems. The detailed frameworks in this article may guide research and educational programs to optimize team function.