The effectiveness of an interdisciplinary approach to EEG instruction for residents(r)

Expanding EEG use calls for education during postgraduate training. We performed a study to see whether an innovative, interdisciplinary approach to EEG instruction for residents achieved curriculum goals of increasing knowledge of EEG use and interpretation. A 45-minute EEG educational module was developed by a clinical neurophysiologist and a neurocritical care anesthesiologist. After institutional review board approval and consent, neurologic surgery residents were evaluated using a 25-question assessment tool before and after the module to assess its impact. This tool included EEG tracing interpretations. Nine of 10 residents completed the study. Assessment tool scores increased from a mean of 12.00 ± 1.87 before the educational module to 19.67 ± 2.06 (P < 0.001) after the educational module. This innovative, collaborative approach for EEG instruction of residents using the expertise of a clinical neurophysiologist met the curriculum goals after a 45-minute educational module as measured by the study assessment tool.