Why medical educators should continue to focus on clinical outcomes

摘要

To the Editor: In their recent Perspective, Cook and West1 argue that clinical outcomes should not be the sole focus of medical education research, and they offer excellent advice for designing research and selecting outcomes that will best inform medical education. Although we agree it is challenging to extend the end point of medical education research to the clinical environment, we believe such work is critical to improvements not only in education but also in patient safety and health care quality.Our country stands at a critical juncture. As we struggle to manage unsustainable health care costs and implement the Affordable Care Act, physicians and other providers are being asked to improve value by providing higher-quality care at lower cost.2 Yet, critical questions remain unanswered. How will we form teams to deliver effective multidisciplinary care for complex patients across ambulatory and inpatient settings? How will we respond to penalties for readmissions and hospital-acquired conditions that are often a result of poor communication? How will we reduce use of expensive imaging and other tests when patients expect them?