Does how much a resident teaches impact performance? A comparison of preclinical teaching hours to pathology residents’ in-service examination scores

BACKGROUND: While others have studied the effects of resident teaching on medical student performance, few have examined the benefits to the resident educator. Our study compared the quantity of pathology residents’ didactic teaching with their performance on in-service examinations. METHODS: The academic records of anatomic/clinical pathology residents over 10 years were reviewed. Scores on step I of the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE(®)), the annual percentile on the in-service examination, and preclinical teaching hours for each resident were obtained. RESULTS: Average annual teaching hours showed a weak positive correlation with mean in-service examination performance. Those below the 50th percentile had a lower number of teaching hours (average 7.8) than above the 50th percentile (mean 10.4, P=0.01). The incremental positive association between the two metrics increased by year in training and was strongest among senior residents, even controlling for USMLE performance (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: There is an association between the amount of pathology residents’ preclinical educational activity and their mean performance on in-service examinations.