Assessing Test Item Writing Bias at a Physician Assistant Program

On Demand

CMEs: 0.75

Primary Speaker(s)

Hannah Wright, MMS, PA-C (she/her/hers)

Clinical Assistant Professor
Stanford University School of Medicine
Palo Alto, California

Slides

Co-Speaker(s)

Courtney E. Nelson, DMSc, PA-C (she/her/hers)

Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of Pre-Clerkship Education
Stanford University School of Medicine
Eric J. Ip, PharmD, APh, BCPS, CSCS, CDCES, FCSHP (he/him/his)

Clinical Professor
Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford, California

Disclosure(s):

Hannah Wright, MMS, PA-C: No financial relationships to disclose

Courtney E. Nelson, DMSc, PA-C: No financial relationships to disclose

Eric J. Ip, PharmD, APh, BCPS, CSCS, CDCES, FCSHP: No financial relationships to disclose

Description: The COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice protests in 2020 renewed a focus on health equity practices and bias in medical education. This movement led to the establishment of a curricular subcommittee within an ARC-PA Accredited Physician Assistant Program's JEDI committee to assess bias within the program’s test items.

Learning Objectives:

Analyze the role of sociodemographic identifiers in medical test items and their clinical relevance in the context of health equity practices
Detail the process undertaken by a JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) curricular subcommittee to review and evaluate bias in test items
Evaluate strategies for the thoughtful inclusion of sociodemographic data in medical education to address sociostructural determinants of health and improve learning outcomes