The overall culture of residency selection needs fixing

Amit Persad

doi:10.1503/cmaj.68993

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Canadian program directors have zero data to select residency candidates
Matthew D. McInnes

Posted on: 11 April 2018

Posted on: (11 April 2018)

Canadian program directors have zero data to select residency candidates
Matthew D. McInnes, Associate professor of Radiology and Epidemiology, University of Ottawa, The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Ont.
I share Dr. Persad's concern. I supervised nine CARMS matches as diagnostic radiology residency program director in Ottawa and it was plainly obvious that the lack of objective data with which to evaluate candidates is at the crux of a deeply flawed system. Good research(1) has identified that objective data (medical school marks or examinations) are the only reliable indicators of success in residency. Canadian program directors presently have zero objective data to use to select candidates. We are, as far as I am aware, the only system in the world that has both an entirely pass fail system combined with lack of standardized examinations (the LMCC examination is done after Carms).

This frustration from students (subjective/ vague criteria) and program directors (lack of useful data points) comes up year after year(2). Until Canadian Medical schools and the LMCC rectify this by moving the LMCC to third year (for a four-year program), or return to an objective, marks-based evaluation system, these frustrations will not subside.

References
1. Kenny S, McInnes M, Singh V. Associations between residency selection strategies and doctor performance: a meta-analysis. Med Educ 2013;47:790-800.
2. McInnes M. Residency matching woes. CMAJ 2015;187:357.

Competing Interests: None declared.