December 2005 ■ Journal of Dental Education 1315 An Evidence-Based Model of Effective Self-Assessment for Directing Professional Learning Joanna Asadoorian, A.A.S. (D.H.), M.Sc.; Helen P. Batty, M.D., M.Ed. Abstract: An innovative model for conducting meaningful self-assessments is presented to help oral health care professionals efficiently determine what to learn with the goal of remaining competent. A review and analysis of the literature drawing from several databases was conducted to develop the model. Through this process, we identified four key categories: prerequisite competencies, process, applications, and tools that are suggested to occur within a supportive environment to carry out valid self- assessments and to positively influence learning choices and practice improvements. Prof. Asadoorian is Assistant Professor and First-Year Clinical Coordinator, School of Dental Hygiene, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Manitoba; Dr. Batty is Associate Professor and Director, Graduate Studies and Faculty Development Programs, Department of Family and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. Direct correspondence and requests for reprints to Prof. Joanna Asadoorian, D35-780 Bannatyne Avenue, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3E 0W2; 204-789-3574 phone; 204-789-3948 fax; Joanna_asadoorian@umanitoba.ca. Key words: self-assessment, continuing education, quality assurance, continuing competency Submitted for publication 7/11/05; accepted 9/8/05 T o ensure public safety and access to quality health care, quality assurance (QA) mecha- nisms have included various initiatives de- signed to narrow the gaps between practitioners’ knowledge and performance and new advancements in health care. While mandated continuing educa- tion (CE) is commonly required in many health pro- fessions including those of oral health care provid- ers, more recent literature suggests that as an isolated vehicle for ensuring competence, CE is insufficient. 1-3 In response to these deficiencies, we developed a self- assessment model to help health care practitioners self-direct their own professional development with the aim of remaining competent. Self-assessment (SA) has been advocated and utilized as a sophisticated approach to ensuring com- petence. 3-8 However, current resources that enable the typical practitioner to carry out valid self-assessments are scant, disorganized, and difficult to use. The aim of this article, and the model described, is to help oral health care practitioners, individually or within continuing competence (CC) programs, to accurately self-assess practice behaviors in order to direct their professional learning toward appropriate sources in an efficient manner. We believe that this synthesis of available evidence, structured as a model, will fa- cilitate meaningful SA through the organization it provides to thinking and subsequent implementation of SA as it is understood within the health practitio- ner context. Method With the aim of developing a conceptual model based on the best available evidence, we conducted a literature search of the databases Medline, Cumu- lative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Abstracts (CINAHL), and EMBASE from 1963 to November 2004, using combinations of the following key words: self-assessment, quality assurance, continu- ing competence, and continuing education. While more than 300 publications were identified electroni- cally through the initial search, potential articles were excluded at the title and abstract stage if judged ir- relevant by the first author. The primary exclusion criteria were the failure of the publication to address the use of SA by health care providers in a context of practice performance or behaviors. Additional salient references, including textbooks, were identified from citations given in the initial search items. This pro- cess was conducted several times until the search was deemed saturated. We purposefully included various forms of data, provided they contributed to the un- derstanding of SA.