DDQX Learning will become a globally-recognized thought leader in teaching medical students how to think like a physician through fun, accessible, and affordable solutions based on Dr. Deason's proprietary learning methodologies.
Peeling back the layers of DDQX Learning reveals not just an innovative educational platform, but a profound mission rooted in one doctor’s journey through the labyrinth of medical education. Dr. Brandon Deason, MD, the visionary behind DDQX Learning, has transformed personal challenges and unique insights into a dynamic space where medical students can thrive. Join us as we journey through the mind of the founder and discover the heartbeat of this transformative platform.
Q: What motivated you to start DDQX Learning, and how did your personal experiences shape that decision?
A: To start DDQX Learning, I had to leave a full-time, salaried position with a company that has the durability to withstand any storm and begin building my own medical education company from scratch. A lot of factors went into this decision, but one of the biggest motivators was forming the company on the anniversary of my dad’s passing. He was an entrepreneur with a high school education who liked to tease me that if he could build a successful business with a HS degree, then I sure as heck should be able to build a better one with an MD.
Q: DDQX Learning prides itself on its unique 5P Approach. Can you shed some light on what this approach entails and why you believe it’s essential for medical students?
A: The 5P Approach accomplishes what no resource out there has been able to do; it provides students with a stepwise approach to medical cases that showcases and continually reinforces how to think like a physician. The approach shows students how to Prioritize key information, Paraphrase the question presented, Prognose (Predict) the likely outcome, Pick that outcome from among the answer choices, and perform a Post-mortem of the question, in which the student develops 10-15 future case iterations they could see. This is essential for improving both standardized test taking scores and clinical readiness prior to seeing real patients.
Treat your questions like patients now and you won’t try to treat your patients like questions later.
Q: In the initial stages of establishing DDQX Learning, what were some of the biggest challenges you faced and how did you overcome them?
A: Two of my toughest challenges at the onset were determining my niche within medical education and establishing immediate sources of revenue to support my longer-term goals. I solved both of these challenges by establishing profiles on tutoring platforms. Tutoring clients brought in money while giving me the opportunity to refine my learning methods in 1-on-1 settings.
Q: How does your personal philosophy about medical education differ from the mainstream, and how is that reflected in DDQX Learning?
A: To borrow/adapt a phrase Boud and Feletti used in 1997,
Medical education as it currently exists is an ineffective and inhumane way to prepare students.
The volume of medical information continues to expand at an ever-accelerating rate. Rather than rote memorization, we need to foster physicians with a diverse skillset that combines critical thinking, technology, and empathy.
Q: You tout the platform’s gamified learning experience. Why do you think gamification is the future of medical education?
A: Gamification is already permeating education and has been shown to increase engagement, motivation, and retention among students. Medical education and other graduate-level degrees have yet to see these benefits, however, largely due to institutions and businesses in these spaces wanting to prioritize a “professional” appearance. I want to give students a way to break up the monotony and have some fun while they’re learning this amazing, life-saving information.
Q: Looking back at your journey, in what ways do you think you’ve grown or changed since the inception of DDQX Learning?
A: One of the biggest ways I’ve grown in is my ability to adapt and iterate on my ideas through failure and feedback. While it’s important as a CEO to lead with a strong mission and vision, understand that the way in which the mission and vision are ultimately accomplished will be melded by market forces and customer feedback.
Each perceived failure or setback now makes me more confident that my next iteration will be even closer to the mark.
Q: The lack of quality mentorship is a significant pain point for many students. Why do you personally feel that mentorship is crucial in the medical field, and how does DDQX Learning look to address this?
A: Due to the competitiveness of the application process, the medical student population is largely filled with individuals who are only used to academic success. Unfortunately, no matter where you come from or what you’ve accomplished before, medical education will often push you to your limit and beyond. However, students don’t know this and tend to view their struggles as personal failures, then do their best to mask them so as not to be perceived as weak.
Mentors are key to building resilience in medical students.
Mentors show us that we are not the first to walk this path and to meet these obstacles. While it may be challenging, we too can overcome them and continue forward. As the DDQX Learning platform grows, it is our goal to develop a hub where all of our members can connect with peers, mentors, and industry leaders.
Q: Can you share a memorable behind-the-scenes moment or a ‘eureka’ instance during the development of DDQX Learning that readers might find fascinating?
A: The idea for the fifth P of the 5P Approach, the Post-mortem, came to me during a tutoring session with a particularly snarky medical student. We had been studying using a systems-based approach, widely considered the best way to currently learn medicine. Whenever I would ask for a differential diagnosis, the student would love to give an answer along the lines of, “well, we’re in the cardiac block…so, it’s going to be a cardiac cause!”
While knowing the current system of study might serve well in the moment, it does not benefit the student in the long run as patients don’t complain of “chest pain that’s definitely due to a cardiac cause.”
After receiving that response for the umpteenth time that day, I began peppering my student with hypothetical iterations of the case that was presented. While I was initially just trying to prove a point, when I was done the student exclaimed that they had never seen anyone connect medical information from a multisystem approach in that way. They asked if I could do it for them with each case and I said, “Better yet, I’ll show you how to do it for yourself.”
That student went on to improve her USMLE Step 2 score by 48 points more than she had scored on USMLE Step 1.
Q: Where do you envision DDQX Learning in the next five years, and are there any upcoming features or innovations that students can look forward to?
A: Medical education is just the start for us. Initial expansions will focus on extending the pipeline of our products into graduate medical education and continuing medical education as well as assisting premedical students with MCAT preparation and medical school admissions. However, we’ll keep going from there.
The 5P Approach works on more than just medical cases, it can be applied to any standardized exam or test preparation.
I’m inspired by the One Health Initiative to find ways to bring allopathic doctors, osteopathic doctors, nurses, dentists, veterinarians, and other health-science workers together, so those are the fields I’d like to move into next. From there, the sky is the limit as we look to move into high school, college, technical programs, and upskilling exams.
Q: Beyond DDQX Learning, what hobbies or activities do you enjoy in your free time? How do these activities influence or inspire your work?
A: It should come as no surprise that a favorite pastime of mine for the last several decades has been playing video games of every kind of genre. I developed enough hand-eye coordination to make a robotic surgeon jealous the first time I was allowed to test a module. I spent several years leading a guild of 100+ members, forming alliances that allowed us to defeat our enemies and rise to the top of the leaderboards.
Most importantly, I formed lifelong friendships through the community and sense of shared purpose that gaming brought. I hope to replicate this with the DDQX Learning platform by bringing together medical students from around the globe with opportunities to learn, compete, and bond.
My other major pastime is bonding with my children through shared activities. Working from home has afforded me the opportunity to bond with my own children as closely as my dad and I had, and to foster each of my kid’s individual interests. As we discovered and worked with each of my children’s unique learning disabilities in turn (ADHD, autism, and speech apraxia), I developed a deeper appreciation for how much the optimal conditions for each person’s learning can differ.
DDQX Learning’s mission is to improve medical student outcomes, which is something that extends far beyond teaching content to finding the optimal conditions in which each medical student can not only learn, but thrive.
