Inter-site consistency at a multi-site psychiatry clerkship

Objective: This study examines the effects of clinical site assignment within a multiple-site psychiatry clerkship program on the convergent outcome of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) subject examination. Method: NBME scores, controlled for baseline pre-clerkship knowledge base as measured by second year human behavior scores, were compared for inpatient and outpatient clinical clerkship sites. Results: No effect of clinical site assignment on NBME scores was demonstrated, suggesting that inter-site consistency occurred for the performance outcomes measured. Conclusions: Similar assessments can help other clerkship directors monitor clinical sites for quality of their educational programs, which is increasingly important as medical schools expand their clinical sites to community-based programs.