Introduction:

Education in medical residencies requires a solid assessment system, based on objective criteria. It is fundamental to establish the acquisition of adequate levels of competence in the students, which can be assessed with an electronic portfolio.

Material and methods:

One-group pre-post test study design. Pediatric pneumology residents from the National Institute of Pediatrics in Mexico City were included. An electronic portfolio was designed in Google Sites, that included these competencies: elaboration of clinical history, medical notes, interpretation of imaging studies and professionalism. These were assessed with rubrics developed by UNAM Faculty of Medicine, before and after four months of the portfolio implementation. Wilcoxon rank test was used for analysis.

Results:

11 Students participated, the total population of specialty residents in the hospital. Four women and seven men, average age of 34 years; 6 first-year and 5 second-year residents. Cronbach’s alpha of the rubrics ranged from 0.71 to 0.91. An statistically significant increase was found in the four assessed competencies, when comparing the pre with the post-test levels.

Conclusions:

The electronic portfolio is an instrument capable of objectively assessing clinical competencies in medical residents, can help determine their acquired competency level and also provide information useful for formative assessment.