Evaluating a Residency Program Using Reflections of Recent Resident Graduates and their Pediatric Colleagues

Abstract

Background and Purposes: In response to the new Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) mandate for residency programs to use feedback
to improve its educational program, we piloted a novel evaluation strategy of a residency
program using structured interviews of resident graduates working in a primary care practice
and their physician associates. Methods : A research assistant performed a structured telephone interview. Quantitative
data assessing the graduate’s self-assessment and the graduate’s clinical practice by the
associate were analyzed. In addition, we performed a qualitative analysis of the interviews. Results: Thirteen resident graduates in primary care practice and seven physician practice
associates participated in the study. Graduate self-assessment revealed high satisfaction
with their residency training and competency. The associates judged our graduates as
highly competent and mentioned independent decision-making and strong interpersonal
skills (such as teamwork and communication) as important. They specifically cited the
graduate’s skills in intensive care medicine and adolescent medicine as well as communication
and teamwork skills as important contributions to their practice. Conclusions: The ACGME Outcomes Project, which increases the emphasis on educational
outcomes in the accreditation of residency education programs, requires programs
to provide evidence of its effectiveness in preparing residents for practice. Direct assessment
of the competency of our physician graduates in practice using structured interviews
of graduates and their practice associates provide useful feedback information to a
residency program as part of a comprehensive evaluation plan of our program’s curriculum
and can be used to direct future educational initiatives of our training program.