Where does knowledge translate into action for students, residents and clinical teachers? The clinical learning environment (CLE)! Tools to evaluate the CLE would ideally be: (1) appropriate for all health care team members to complete; (2) informed by contemporary learning environment frameworks; and (3) feasible/quick to complete. A recent review of existing tools found they do not cover the four Josiah Macy Foundation’s (JSF) learning environment domains and are impractical for busy clinical settings (eg, ranging from 25 items to >100)!

The solution? A short CLE instrument (Clinical Learning Environment Quick Survey – CLEQS) appropriate for all participants and professions in the clinical workplace. Following established validity evidence procedures, we developed and implemented a 10-item form that samples each of the four JSF learning environment domains, is completed on-line in < 2 minutes, and has good reliability (Cronbach’s α = > 0.83). It was recently used by 6 interprofessional teams (>200 respondents ranging from medical students to interprofessional clinical team members) representing hospital-based sites, primary care clinics, and mock-drill simulations. The data collected helps target strengths and opportunities to improve CLE’s with its “quick” response time making it ideal for tracking progress!