Steven Angus

Teaching Risk Management: Addressing ACGME Core Competencies

BACKGROUND Risk management is an important aspect of education for all residents. Unfortunately, few curricula currently exist to fulfill this educational need. OBJECTIVE We developed a curriculum that teaches residents basic principles of risk management with the goals of (1) educating residents about the medical-legal environment in which they operate, (2) helping residents identify common malpractice exposures, and (3) teaching practical risk management/patient safety interventions that can be implemented in their practice that could reduce malpractice exposure and improve patient safety. METHODS The curriculum was developed by Medical Risk Management, LLC, a Connecticut-based risk management firm, in conjunction with academic leadership at the University of Connecticut. The program uses 3 learning modalities: live lectures, web-based video modules, and e-mailed learning publications. Gains in resident knowledge through participation in the curriculum were measured using pretests and posttests. Learner satisfaction with the curriculum was measured through web-based surveys. RESULTS We found a significant improvement in knowledge in residents who took the pretest and posttest (P < .001). Of the survey respondents, 97% said the content was relevant to their specialty practice and 95% responded that these sessions should be held annually. Most respondents indicated they would change their practice as a result of what they learned from the live lectures. CONCLUSION This risk management curriculum has been successful in providing our residents with learning activities in risk management, improving their knowledge of risk management principles, and changing their attitudes and behaviors. These improvements may lead to fewer malpractice claims against them and the hospitals they train in.

Internal Medicine Residency Program Directors' Views of the Core Entrustable Professional Activities for Entering Residency: An Opportunity to Enhance Communication of Competency Along the Continuum.

Purpose To examine internal medicine (IM) residency program directors’ (PDs’) perspectives on the Core Entrustable Professional Activities for Entering Residency (Core EPAs)—introduced into undergraduate medical education to further competency-based assessment—and on communicating competency-based information during transitions. Method A spring 2015 Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine survey asked PDs of U.S. IM residency programs for their perspectives on which Core EPAs new interns must or should possess on day 1, which are most essential, and which have the largest gap between expected and observed performance. Their views and preferences were also requested regarding communicating competency-based information at transitions from medical school to residency and residency to fellowship/employment. Results The response rate was 57% (204/361 programs). The majority of PDs felt new interns must/should possess 12 of the 13 Core EPAs. PDs’ rankings of Core EPAs by relative importance were more varied than their rankings by the largest gaps in performance. Although preferred timing varied, most PDs (82%) considered it important for medical schools to communicate Core EPA-based information to PDs; nearly three-quarters (71%) would prefer a checklist format. Many (60%) would be willing to provide competency-based evaluations to fellowship directors/employers. Most (> 80%) agreed that there should be a bidirectional communication mechanism for programs/employers to provide feedback on competency assessments. Conclusions The gaps identified in Core EPA performance may help guide medical schools’ curricular and assessment tool design. Sharing competency-based information at transitions along the medical education continuum could help ensure production of competent, practice-ready physicians.

Changes in the National Residency Matching Program Policy: Are Internal Medicine Program Directors “All-In”?

Michael Adams, MD, FACP, is Program Director of Medicine at Georgetown University; Thomas B. Morrison, MD, is Fellow in Cardiovascular Medicine at Vanderbilt University; Stephanie Call, MD, is Program Director of Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University; Andrew J. Halvorsen, MS, is Biostatistician and Project and Data Manager in the Internal Medicine Residency Office of Educational Innovations at Mayo Clinic; Jared Moore, MD, is Chief Medical Resident in Internal Medicine at Ohio State University; Maria Lucarelli, MD, is Associate Program Director in Internal Medicine at Ohio State University; Steven Angus, MD, is Program Director of Medicine at the University of Connecticut Health Center; and Furman S. McDonald, MD, MPH, is Program Director of Internal Medicine Residency Office of Educational Innovations at the Mayo Clinic. Funding: This study was supported in part by the Mayo Clinic Internal Medicine Residency Office of Educational Innovations as part of the ACGME Educational Innovations Project. The Mayo Clinic Survey Research Center provided assistance with the survey design and data collection. We are grateful for the support of the Association of Program Directors of Internal Medicine and the members of the Survey Committee and to the residency program directors who completed the Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine (APDIM) survey. While we are reporting the results of the APDIM Survey Committee, we are not presuming to speak for the organization and our paper does not constitute an official policy statement of APDIM, the APDIM Council, or any other organzation with which any of the authors may be affiliated.

Usefulness of the ACGME Resident Survey: A View from Internal Medicine Program Directors

AAIM is the largest academically focused specialty organization representing departments of internal medicine at medical schools and teaching hospitals in the United States and Canada. As a consortium of five organizations, AAIM represents department chairs and chiefs; clerkship, residency, and fellowship program directors; division chiefs; and academic and business administrators as well as other faculty and staff in departments of internal medicine and their divisions.

Drivers of Application Inflation: A National Survey of Internal Medicine Residents

AAIM is the largest academically focused specialty organization representing departments of internal medicine at medical schools and teaching hospitals in the United States and Canada. As a consortium of five organizations, AAIM represents department chairs and chiefs; clerkship, residency, and fellowship program directors; division chiefs; and academic and business administrators as well as other faculty and staff in departments of internal medicine and their divisions.

The Cost-Effective Evaluation of Syncope.

Syncope is a common clinical problem that carries a high socioeconomic burden. A structured approach in the evaluation of syncope with special emphasis on a detailed history, comprehensive physical examination that includes orthostatic vital signs, and an electrocardiogram, proves to be the most cost-effective approach. The need for additional testing and hospital admission should be based on the results of the initial evaluation and use of risk-stratification tools that help identify those syncope patients at highest risk for poor outcomes.