ArticleBritish journal of clinical pharmacology2022
Do we become better prescribers after graduation: A 1-year international follow-up study among junior doctors.
Article in British journal of clinical pharmacology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Assessment and evaluation of prescribing competences: A systematic review and recommendations.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2025Pooled it
- Access to clinical data for direct oral anticoagulant prescriptions in community pharmacy and implications for medication optimisation: a mixed-methods study.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2026Article
- Reimagining pharmacology education.Pharmacological reviews · 2026Review
- The Feasibility and Quality of the European Prescribing Exam: An International Multicenter Pilot Study Among 3109 Medical Students From 16 Medical Schools.Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics · 2026Article
- Therapeutic reasoning in case reports: Insights into current reporting and learning opportunities.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2025Review
- Barriers and solutions for the European prescribing exam: a qualitative world café study.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2025Article
- Understanding factors that influence the drug choice of prescribers: A Q-methodology study.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2025Article
- Enhancing therapeutic reasoning: key insights and recommendations for education in prescribing.BMC medical education · 2024Review
- The impact of a summative national prescribing assessment and curriculum type on the development of the prescribing competence of junior doctors.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2023Article
- Perception, knowledge and attitude towards childhood fever: A survey among final-year medical students.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2023Article
- Do we become better prescribers after graduation: A 1-year international follow-up study among junior doctors.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
20 authors at 11 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aimThe aim of this study was to investigate how the prescribing knowledge and skills of junior doctors in the Netherlands and Belgium develop in the year after graduation. We also analysed differences in knowledge and skills between surgical and nonsurgical junior doctors.
methodsThis international, multicentre (n = 11), longitudinal study analysed the learning curves of junior doctors working in various specialties via three validated assessments at about the time of graduation, and 6 months and 1 year after graduation. Each assessment contained 35 multiple choice questions (MCQs) on medication safety (passing grade ≥85%) and three clinical scenarios.
resultsIn total, 556 junior doctors participated, 326 (58.6%) of whom completed the MCQs and 325 (58.5%) the clinical case scenarios of all three assessments. Mean prescribing knowledge was stable in the year after graduation, with 69% (SD 13) correctly answering questions at assessment 1 and 71% (SD 14) at assessment 3, whereas prescribing skills decreased: 63% of treatment plans were considered adequate at assessment 1 but only 40% at assessment 3 (P < .001). While nonsurgical doctors had similar learning curves for knowledge and skills as surgical doctors (P = .53 and P = .56 respectively), their overall level was higher at all three assessments (all P < .05).
conclusionThese results show that junior doctors' prescribing knowledge and skills did not improve while they were working in clinical practice. Moreover, their level was under the predefined passing grade. As this might adversely affect patient safety, educational interventions should be introduced to improve the prescribing competence of junior doctors.
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