Goal Setting, Feedback, and Performance in Emergency Medicine Training

<ns5:p>Background Feedback is crucial in emergency medicine (EM) education. However, the fast-paced environment of EM complicates timely feedback and the use of goal setting. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted using a dataset derived from the feedback survey tool of a four-year, academic, EM residency from November 2018 to March 2021. Residents were categorized by faculty as being either “high,” “expected,” or below expected (“below”) performers. All residents and teaching faculty in the EM program were eligible for inclusion with no exclusion criteria. The primary outcome was the difference in goal setting and feedback content with respect to faculty-identified resident performance level. Results 3480 feedback entries for 59 total residents were included. Among those who received feedback, we saw no significant difference in use of goal setting by resident performance level (p = 0.18) or by postgraduate year (PGY) level (p = 0.25). There was also no significant difference in feedback content (p = 0.37) or use of goal setting (p = 0.55) by PGY level. “High” performers had an odds ratio (OR) of 1.66 (95%CI 1.40–1.97) for receiving verbal feedback and had OR=2.3 (95%CI 1.8–2.8) for receiving only positive feedback rather than both positive and constructive feedback compared with “expected” performers (p < 0.0001). Compared with “expected” performers, “below” performers had OR=4.6 (95%CI 2.0–10.6) for receiving only constructive feedback and OR= 0.38 (95%CI 0.15–0.96) for receiving only positive feedback rather than both positive and constructive feedback (p= 0.0005 and p = 0.04, respectively). Discussion The frequency and content of feedback from EM faculty, as well as the use of goal setting, are variable. Additional studies are needed to determine the impact of these variables on resident performance.</ns5:p>