A Program Director Survey of the Clinical Base Year in Anesthesiology Residency Programs

Abstract

To maintain compliance with the current shift towards competency-based milestone assessment in graduate medical education, residency training programs must reflect this emphasis in their curricula starting with the intern year of training.1 In working towards collaborative efforts in curricular development between Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) anesthesiology residency programs, understanding the structure and design of the clinical base year for anesthesiology residency programs nationwide will serve as a valuable initial step. Anonymous online surveys were sent to anesthesiology residency program directors to collect data regarding their program's anesthesiology clinical base year (CBY) required, elective, and novel rotations. The survey was also designed to characterize the educational resources provided by the department, changes in the design of the clinical base year, and the feedback received from interns or other rotation department heads. Thirty-nine out of 130 US anesthesiology residency program directors responded (30%). The majority of respondents (87%) provide an in-house categorical intern CBY with a majority of those (94%) including a month dedicated to anesthesiology, during which some form of mentorship by anesthesiology faculty or senior house staff was provided. The majority of respondents with anesthesiology exposure stated that they provide educational resources such as textbook materials (82%) or simulation sessions (89%) to their residents. With the evolution of the role of the anesthesiologist, advancements in biotechnology, and newly created board examinations, it is imperative that the CBY prepares rising anesthesiology residents to meet these demands. Results from this survey study can serve as the initial step in improving the clinical base year structure for anesthesiology residents nationally. Collaborative efforts can be undertaken to better incorporate clinical competency, feedback mechanisms, and educational tools through the collection of experiential evidence of successful strategies as well as challenges faced by program directors nationwide.