Clinical Assessment and Management Examination--Outpatient (CAMEO): its validity and use in a surgical milestones paradigm

Adam B Wilson; Jennifer N Choi; Laura J Torbeck; John D Mellinger; Gary L Dunnington; Reed G Williams

doi:10.1016/j.jsurg.2014.06.010

Clinical Assessment and Management Examination--Outpatient (CAMEO): its validity and use in a surgical milestones paradigm

J Surg Educ. 2015 Jan-Feb;72(1):33-40. doi: 10.1016/j.jsurg.2014.06.010. Epub 2014 Jul 24.

Authors

Adam B Wilson¹, Jennifer N Choi², Laura J Torbeck², John D Mellinger³, Gary L Dunnington², Reed G Williams²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana. Electronic address: wilsoadb@iupui.edu.
² Department of Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana.
³ Division of General Surgery, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Springfield, Illinois.

PMID: 25088367
DOI: 10.1016/j.jsurg.2014.06.010

Abstract

Objectives: Clinical Assessment and Management Examination--Outpatient (CAMEO) is a metric for evaluating the clinical performance of surgery residents. The aim of this study was to investigate the measurement characteristics of CAMEO and propose how it might be used as an evaluation tool within the general surgery milestones project.

Design: A total of 117 CAMEO evaluations were gathered and used for analysis. Internal consistency reliability was estimated, and item characteristics were explored. A Kruskal-Wallis procedure was performed to discern how well the instrument discriminated between training levels. An exploratory factor analysis was also conducted to understand the dimensionality of the evaluation.

Setting: CAMEO evaluations were collected from 2 departments of surgery geographically located in the Midwestern United States. Combined, the participating academic institutions graduate approximately 18 general surgery residents per year.

Participants: In this retrospective data analysis, the number of evaluations per resident ranged from 1 to 7, and evaluations were collected from 2006 to 2013. For the purpose of data analysis, residents were classified as interns (postgraduate year 1 [PGY1]), juniors (PGY2-3), or seniors (PGY4-5).

Results: CAMEO scores were found to have high internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.96), and all items were highly correlated (≥ 0.86) to composite CAMEO scores. Scores discriminated between senior residents (PGY4-5) and lower level residents (PGY1-3). Per an exploratory factor analysis, CAMEO was revealed to measure a single dimension of "clinical competence."

Conclusions: The findings of this research aligned with related literature and verified that CAMEO scores have desirable measurement properties, making CAMEO an attractive resource for evaluating the clinical performance of surgery residents.

Keywords: CAMEO; Patient Care; clinic evaluation; milestones; validity.

Publication types

Validation Study

MeSH terms

Clinical Competence / standards*
Factor Analysis, Statistical
General Surgery / education*
Humans
Internship and Residency / standards*
Task Performance and Analysis