Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40527570›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2025

Evolution of medical students' tolerance for uncertainty throughout their curriculum: a systematic mixed studies review protocol.

Nicolas Belhomme, Francois Robin, Alain Lescoat, Pierre Pottier, Emmanuel Triby, Thierry Pelaccia

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Nicolas BelhommeService de Médecine Interne et Immunologie Clinique, CHU Rennes, Université de Rennes France; Inserm, EHESP, Irset (Institut de Recherche en Santé, Environnement et Travail)-UMR_S 1085, Rennes, France nicolas.belhomme@chu-rennes.fr.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9438-3350
Francois RobinService de Rhumatologie, CHU Rennes, Université de Rennes, Rennes, France.
Alain LescoatService de Médecine Interne et Immunologie Clinique, CHU Rennes, Université de Rennes France; Inserm, EHESP, Irset (Institut de Recherche en Santé, Environnement et Travail)-UMR_S 1085, Rennes, France.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2081-8558
Pierre PottierService de Médecine Interne et Immunologie Clinique, CHU Nantes; Faculté de Médecine-Pôle Santé, Nantes Université, Nantes, France.
Emmanuel TribyLaboratoire Interuniversitaire des Sciences de l'Education et de la Communication, LISEC_UR2310, Université de Strasbourg, Rennes, France.
Thierry PelacciaLaboratoire Interuniversitaire des Sciences de l'Education et de la Communication, LISEC_UR2310, Université de Strasbourg, Rennes, France.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionUnderstanding how uncertainty tolerance (UT) evolves in medical students is crucial to identify training needs and implement effective interventions. However, the dynamic nature of UT and the mechanisms behind its changes over time remain poorly understood. This systematic review aims to map the development of UT in medical students across the course of their training by synthesising the available evidence. We will adopt a systematic mixed studies review approach to provide an integrative synthesis of both quantitative and qualitative data, offering a comprehensive overview of UT temporal evolution. METHOD AND ANALYSIS: The protocol follows the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. We will conduct searches in Embase, Medline, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, ERIC, Cochrane Library and PsycINFO, from inception to July 2026. We will manually search the references of included studies and track citations through Google Scholar to identify additional eligible studies. Two reviewers will independently extract data from each eligible study using a pre-piloted Microsoft Excel data extraction form. A thematic synthesis will be employed to develop analytic themes from the existing literature, generating new concepts and explanatory hypotheses. Study quality will be evaluated using the QuADS score. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is not necessary for this systematic review, as no primary data will be collected. The protocol for this review has been registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews PROSPERO: CRD42024591340.

Indexed as

CurriculumStudents, MedicalHumansResearch DesignSystematic Reviews as TopicUncertaintyClinical Decision-MakingClinical ReasoningEducation, MedicalSystematic Review

Identifiers

PMID40527570
PMCPMC12182133

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.