Abstract
Purpose :
To pilot a structured ophthalmology curriculum for emergency room physicians consisting of four hours of didactic and skills training and assess its effectiveness with regards to improving ophthalmic knowledge and comfort in performing an ophthalmic physical exam.
Methods :
A web-based survey was sent to trainees from the emergency medicine department to assess ophthalmic knowledge and comfort with eye exam skills. Ophthalmic knowledge was tested using diagnosis and practice management vignettes and comfort with the eye exam was rated by the trainees on five-point scale. This was followed by a two-hour interactive didactic on the most commonly encountered ophthalmic emergencies and a two hour skills session focused on testing visual acuity, intraocular pressure (IOP), pupil exam, and slit lamp exam. A post-intervention survey was sent exactly two weeks following the skills session to evaluate knowledge retention.
Results :
Fourteen emergency medicine trainees completed both the pre- and post-intervention surveys. Average scores on the diagnosis and practice management vignettes improved from 67.6% on the pre-intervention survey to 75.2% (p=0.03) on the post-intervention survey. Survey data also suggested greater confidence performing components of the eye exam taught in the skills session: checking visual acuity (3.85 to 4.5; p=0.0009), pupil exam (3.64 to 4.42; p=0.0015), IOP (3.64 to 4.35; p=0.0017), slit lamp exam (2.35 to 3.64; p<0.0001), corneal abrasion assessment (2.64 to 3.71; p<0.0001).
Conclusions :
Survey data supports the utility of a focused ophthalmology curriculum for emergency medicine residents. Both fund of knowledge and confidence with regards to performing an ophthalmic physical exam improved. Longitudinal investigation will be required to further assess the long-term impacts of such a curriculum on practice patterns, including frequency of ophthalmology consultation.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2018 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Honolulu, Hawaii, April 29 - May 3, 2018.