PREDICTIVE VALUE OF LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION VS QUESTIONNAIRES FOR EMERGENCY-MEDICINE RESIDENT PERFORMANCE

Objective: To evaluate the predictive value of standard letters of rec ommendation (LORs) vs preprinted questionnaires (PPQs) for resident pe rformance at one emergency medicine (EM) residency program. Methods: A retrospective association of LORs and PPQs with intraining resident p erformance ratings was done at one EM residency program. The residency application files of EM residents who completed the program were revi ewed to locate files that had LORs and PPQs written by the same author . Seventeen resident files contained 32 LOR/PPQ pairs. These LORs and PPQs were submitted in a blinded fashion to 3 outside EM residency dir ectors, Each LOR and PPQ was evaluated for the applicant's suitability for the speciality of EM, medical knowledge, procedural skills, inter personal skills, motivation, and overall rank, The scores given by the outside reviewers were compared with resident performance ratings det ermined by 5 EM attending physicians who evaluated the residents along the same 6 dimensional ratings. Results: Statistically, no difference s were found between the LORs and PPQs in predicting resident performa nce. Conclusions: PPQs may substitute for LORs in the evaluation of re sident applicants.