Preparing fourth-year medical students to teach during internship

Interns are expected to teach medical students, yet there is little formal training in medical school to prepare them for this role. To enhance the teaching skills of our graduating students we initiated a 4-hour “teaching to teach” course as part of the end of the fourth-year curriculum. Course evaluations demonstrate that students strongly support this program (overall ratings 2000 to 2005: mean=4.4 [scale 1 to 5], n=224). When 2004 course participants were surveyed during the last month of their internship, 84% “agree” or “strongly agree” with the statement: “The teaching to teach course helped prepare me for my role as a teacher during internship” (2005: mean 4.2 [scale 1 to 5], n=45, response rate 60%). A course preparing fourth-year students to teach during internship is both feasible and reproducible, with a minimal commitment of faculty and resident time. Participants identify it as an important addition to their education and as useful during internship.