Education Research: Neurology Resident EEG Education: A Survey of US Neurology Residency Program Directors

Objective: To better understand the EEG education provided to adult neurology residents by surveying program directors of adult neurology residency programs in the United States. Methods: An online survey focused on characteristics of neurology residency programs and their EEG teaching systems was distributed to the 161 adult neurology residency program directors listed in the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education website at the time of the study. Results: Forty-seven (29%) out of the 161 program directors completed the survey. Most of the participating programs (89%) were academic. The mean number of 1-month EEG rotations required to graduate was 1.7 (range 0-4, median 1.75). EEG rotations involved the inpatient and outpatient setting in 91% and 70% of programs, respectively. The average number of EEGs read during a typical EEG rotation varied from more than 40, in about one-third of programs, to 0-10, in about 14% of programs. There was significant variability in the requirements for successful completion of EEG rotations, and most program directors (64%) reported not utilizing objective measures to assess EEG milestones. The most commonly used educational methods were didactics throughout the year (95%) and EEG teaching during EEG rotations (93%). The most commonly reported barriers to EEG education were insufficient EEG exposure (32%) and ineffective didactics (11%); possible solutions are summarized. Conclusion: Our study identified a lack of consistency in teaching and evaluating residents during residency and presented EEG education barriers alongside possible solutions. We encourage program directors across the country to re-evaluate their EEG teaching systems in order to optimize EEG education.