76. IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION OF A COORDINATOR-LED, PEDIATRIC PROGRAM COORDINATOR MONTHLY EDUCATIONAL SERIES

Abstract

BackgroundWith ever expanding requirements from the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), the role of the program coordinator has grown, necessitating updated onboarding materials for new coordinators and continuing education for experienced coordinators. While the need for coordinator education and professional development is well-established, there remains the question of who should provide such education. A needs assessment at a single institution of coordinators representing 177 programs (111 ACGME accredited residencies and fellowships, 66 non-ACGME accredited fellowships) found that although monthly meetings were provided by the Graduate Medical Education Office, gaps still existed in the knowledge and engagement of coordinators across-the-board. 86% of coordinators surveyed indicated that coordinator professional development is very important and needed.ObjectiveTo create and assess the impact and feasibility of a coordinator-led educational series for pediatric program coordinators.MethodsThe Department of Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine instituted a monthly, coordinator-led educational series. Three coordinators organized the series, with a total of nine coordinators collaborating on presentation of topics. Over a period of 18 months, 20 distinct topics were delivered, with some topics being repeated (Figure 1). Participants were asked to rate the entire series as a whole at the end of the 18-month period. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the results.ResultsOf 19 pediatric coordinators, 18 completed the final survey (95%). Coordinators reported they were satisfied with the series (94%), likely to recommend to new coordinators (100%), and likely to recommend to experienced coordinators (82%). C-TAGME and opportunities for national participation were identified as topics that would be useful for future sessions. Comments underscored that rolling topics were necessary for new coordinators but would be repetitive for experienced coordinators. The time spent in organization and preparation of the series was estimated at eight hours a month.ConclusionThe implementation of a program coordinator-led educational series was found to be feasible and satisfactory, with coordinators likely to recommend the series to others. More work needs to be done to determine the best format, frequency, and topics for a coordinator-led series. With ever expanding requirements from the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), the role of the program coordinator has grown, necessitating updated onboarding materials for new coordinators and continuing education for experienced coordinators. While the need for coordinator education and professional development is well-established, there remains the question of who should provide such education. A needs assessment at a single institution of coordinators representing 177 programs (111 ACGME accredited residencies and fellowships, 66 non-ACGME accredited fellowships) found that although monthly meetings were provided by the Graduate Medical Education Office, gaps still existed in the knowledge and engagement of coordinators across-the-board. 86% of coordinators surveyed indicated that coordinator professional development is very important and needed. To create and assess the impact and feasibility of a coordinator-led educational series for pediatric program coordinators. The Department of Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine instituted a monthly, coordinator-led educational series. Three coordinators organized the series, with a total of nine coordinators collaborating on presentation of topics. Over a period of 18 months, 20 distinct topics were delivered, with some topics being repeated (Figure 1). Participants were asked to rate the entire series as a whole at the end of the 18-month period. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the results. Of 19 pediatric coordinators, 18 completed the final survey (95%). Coordinators reported they were satisfied with the series (94%), likely to recommend to new coordinators (100%), and likely to recommend to experienced coordinators (82%). C-TAGME and opportunities for national participation were identified as topics that would be useful for future sessions. Comments underscored that rolling topics were necessary for new coordinators but would be repetitive for experienced coordinators. The time spent in organization and preparation of the series was estimated at eight hours a month. The implementation of a program coordinator-led educational series was found to be feasible and satisfactory, with coordinators likely to recommend the series to others. More work needs to be done to determine the best format, frequency, and topics for a coordinator-led series.