Dr. Brydges obtained his MSc and PhD from the Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto. He then completed an NSERC postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Glenn Regehr at the University of British Columbia.
Dr. Brydges conducts research in three related domains: (i) clarifying how healthcare trainees and professionals manage (through self-regulation) their life-long learning, (ii) understanding how to optimize the instructional design of healthcare simulation (and other technology-enhanced learning modalities) for training and assessment of healthcare professionals (iii) identifying best practices in the training and assessment for bedside invasive medical procedures (e.g., lumbar puncture, central line insertion, thoracentesis). Examples of questions he asks include how trainees prepare for future learning, how they learn to self-monitor effectively (i.e., think about their own thinking), how educators and trainees differ in their conceptions of learning, how validity evidence is collected and organized in assessment of health professionals, and how to design training using educational technologies (e.g., iPad apps, web-based simulators) to enhance learning outcomes.
Through studies of self-regulation and simulation, Dr. Brydges aims to understand how training interventions translate into healthcare professional’s behaviours. Most specifically, his work with procedural skills will serve as a proof of concept for developing novel model of ‘competency-based education’ in both academic and community hospital settings. That research arm will have implications for patient care as well as health care system reform (e.g., identifying a need for specialized procedural service teams), and healthcare resource utilization (e.g., providing input to Choosing Wisely initiatives).