The Multiple Mini-interview for Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine Residency Admissions: Reliability and acceptability

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the reliability and acceptability of using the multiple mini-interview (MMI) for Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine in the residency admission selection process.

Study design: A retrospective cross-sectional study.

Setting: Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.

Subjects: Candidates for the Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine residency program in November 2022 and interviewers who evaluated the candidates using the MMI.

Methods: The MMI consisted of 6 ten-minute structured interview scenarios mapped with the expected competencies of the candi-dates. Some parts of the traditional interview were included, e.g., the candidates presenting themselves in station 1 where two interviewers, faculty members and residents, evaluated the candidates independently without discussion among themselves. Interviewers used scoring forms to evaluate the overall performance of the candidates in each MMI using a rating scale of 1 to 10 with an open section for comments. Reliability within each of the MMI stations was determined by intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). The candidates and interviewers completed an anonymous survey questionnaire regarding the MMI. Candidates’ responses to the open-ended questions were recorded.

Results: A total of 12 interviewers and seven candidates participated in the MMI process on the day of the interviews. The overall satisfac-tion of the candidates and interviewers with the 70-minute MMI was positive. Both candidates and interviewers thought the MMI was fair, decreased bias, and could efficiently evaluate the candidates’ performance and strengths. Most of the interviewers (83%) had score differences of at most 3 points for each candidate, which indicates the ability to discriminate between the candidates was quite low. The ICCs of the six MMI stations were 0.34, 0.29, 0.64, 0.95, 0.88, and 0.77. The ICC for MMI scores across all stations was 0.7.

Conclusions: The MMI is a reliable Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine residency admission method. The ICC of 4 of the 6 stations was acceptable. The MMI’s high acceptability among both candidates and interviewers, especially in terms of fairness and decreased bias, allowed efficient evaluation of the candidate’s performance and strengths.