Got my feedback from my first externship. I was by no means expecting to be deemed excellent/very good in all categories or anything like that, but to be scored "marginally competent (needing considerable improvement)" in one or two (esp. One that I don't think I was really given the opportunity to demonstrate fully) stings a bit.
I realize I'm just starting clinics and all but it's still a downer and makes me even less confident in myself.
I've had so many errors on grading that I've almost quit looking at the grades and feedback. I only do it now to make sure someone didn't accidentally fail me or forget to grade me.
This isn't just externships... this is in-hospital stuff. In my first 9 rotations, I had 3 grading errors. A grading success rate of 66%. Super impressive, no? In one of them, I received an 'F' in 'History Taking' ............. on a spay/neuter rotation where the animals were already at the shelter. Yeah, THAT made sense. Turned out to be a clerical error.
On another ..... well, the way we're graded here is 8 sub-grades in each of 3 big categories (Knowledge, Clinical Skill, Professionalism). Then we get an overall grade for each of the categories. Then we get a final overall grade. So... something like 28 grades for each rotation. It's a bit overkill. Anyway. I had an A in each of the 3 big categories ........ and a B overall. Made no sense. It's like scoring A, A, A on two midterms and a final and then getting a B. Turned out to be another clerical error.
Then I had some other entry mistake made and got ... I forget now. A C or a D in something I was supposed to get an A in.
On my first internal medicine rotation, I got written feedback that was CLEARLY meant for someone else. It referenced cases I didn't have, and it just plain didn't make any contextual sense.
On that spay/neuter rotation I was chided for not re-temp'ing a patient who at intake was 104F. Except I did re-temp them an hour later, noted in the record that it was 102F, and cleared the animal for surgery and went on with the day. Apparently it's not enough to write it in the legal record ... apparently you also have to tell the clinician so that you don't get criticized inaccurately in your feedback.
I'm still waiting for a grade from a rotation that was ... geez ... 3 months ago? 4 months ago?
It would be much better to just be all pass/fail, and to require clinicians to have a little 5-minute sit-down chat at the end of each rotation to talk through your strengths and 'growth opportunities' (can't call them weaknesses in today's world, of course). It would save clinicians a CRAP TON of time and headache, and it would give students the chance to interact regarding their feedback. Everyone wins.
Clinical rotation grading is just dumb.