Educational Impact of a Podcast Curriculum for Hematology/Oncology Fellows: Final Results of the Multicenter Cluster Randomized PODCAST-HOF Trial

Abstract

Purpose: Medical podcast integration into hematology/oncology fellowship curricula remains largely unstudied. We conducted a multicenter cluster randomized trial to evaluate the educational impact of a podcast-based curriculum (PC) when delivered alongside standard didactics compared with standard didactics alone.

Methods: Twenty-seven US Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited hematology/oncology fellowship programs were randomized to receive either PC plus standard didactics (podcast arm, n = 14) or standard didactics alone (control arm, n = 13). The PC included curated podcast episodes and detailed show notes on breast cancer (BC), multiple myeloma (MM), bleeding disorders (BDs), and heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT), developed by The Fellow on Call and Two Onc Docs. Fellows completed preintervention and postintervention comfort surveys (Likert scale 1-7) and a 16-item knowledge assessment. Coprimary end points were improvement in mean comfort (≥0.5 points) and knowledge (≥10%). Mixed-effects ANCOVA was used to adjust for baseline scores and program clustering.

Results: Of 420 eligible fellows, 221 (52%) completed baseline surveys and 186 (44%) completed the knowledge assessment. Ninety-nine fellows (53 podcast, 46 control) completed both postintervention assessments. Baseline comfort was similar across groups. The podcast arm demonstrated significantly greater adjusted mean improvements in comfort: BC (0.48; P < .01), MM (0.65; P < .01), BD (0.70; P < .01), and HIT (0.40; P < .01). Knowledge scores improved from 39.7% to 62.0% in the podcast arm versus 43.5% to 50.3% in the control arm (adjusted mean difference, 15.5%; P < .01). Most fellows in the podcast arm (83%) rated show notes as highly useful, and 89% planned continued podcast use.

Conclusion: The PODCAST-HOF trial showed that adding curated podcasts and show notes significantly improved fellow comfort and knowledge. These findings support incorporating The Fellow on Call and Two Onc Docs as a recommended supplement to traditional fellowship didactics.