The high five: a novel assessment tool for medical student-driven feedback for residents on surgery clerkships

Purpose Resident teaching is an important aspect of medical student education, but students are limited in mechanisms to deliver timely and actionable feedback to residents. This study details the creation, deployment, and outcomes of a novel smartphone/web-based application, High Five, to facilitate feedback from medical students to residents. We sought to determine whether implementation of an app was feasible and the effect on quantity and quality of feedback provided. Methods High Five was piloted on two surgery services and compared to a control group over a 6-month period. All participants were surveyed about their experience following their time on service using a four-item scale. Pilot and control groups were compared using t test. The relationship between app usage and quantity of feedback was evaluated using Spearman’s correlation coefficient. Results In this study, 120 residents and 67 medical students participated. Residents with the app received significantly more feedback (2.5 ± 0.8 vs 1.8 ± 0.8) and medical students felt significantly more comfortable giving feedback to residents (3.1 ± 0.8 vs. 2.0 ± 0.9). Residents and medical students were similarly likely to use the app (1.6 ± 0.7 vs. 1.9 ± 0.6; p = 0.25) and similarly expressed that the app contributed a small improvement to a positive learning environment without significant differences between residents and students (2.9 ± 0.9 vs. 2.9 ± 0.8; p = 0.8). Conclusions Utilizing novel technology may provide a feasible and implementable method for students to provide feedback to residents which may enhance communication. Further study in facilitating feedback is needed.