Education
The EMCAPs Training Method for Procedural Competency Among Emergency Medicine Residents
PI: Jon Van Roo, MD (Resident Physician) under the mentorship of D. Mark Courtney, MD
Pilot training in the armed forces involves memorization of key procedures used in emergency situations, called "Critical Action Procedures" (CAPs). The CAPs are learned to a high degree of fidelity so that if critical situations arise during flight, pilots are prepared to perform them automatically. Similar to combat aviation, Emergency Medicine is a field that requires rapid decision-making skills and procedural competency in potentially life-threatening scenarios.
This project proposes a new training method called Emergency Medicine CAPs (EMCAPs). Twelve incoming Emergency Medicine interns will be randomized either to EMCAPs or standard procedural training methods used during residency. Their competency in performing a cricothyrotomy on a sheep trachea model and an internal jugular vein catherization on an ultrasound-guided simulation model will be evaluated based on their accuracy, the number of errors that were made, and the time it took them to complete the procedure.
Funding Agency: The Emergency Medicine Foundation, Resident Research Grant
Funding Amount: $5,000
Funding Duration: 07/01/08-06/30/09
Implementation of a Didactic Curriculum for Residents Rotating Through the Emergency Department: The Northwestern University Rotating Residents Curriculum (NURRC)
PI: Jeremy Branzetti, MD (Resident Physician) under the mentorship of Amer Aldeen, MD
Rotating Residents are a significant component of Emergency Department resident staff at many residency-affiliated hospitals; however, there are few, if any, dedicated curricula for the rotating resident in the ED despite their different educational background and goals. The sheer volume and variety of patients presenting in the ED means that it is a primary point of exposure to many conditions under the purview, though uncommonly seen during training, of internists or surgeons.
This project will create a curriculum specifically designed for rotating residents that will consist of a series of six, one-hour lectures in the fields of orthopedics, ENT, OB/GYN, opthomology, toxicology and trauma. It is hoped that the creation of this curriculum will not only improve the educational value of and satisfaction with the Emergency Department rotation, but could also leade to the creation a self-contained, standardized online curriculum that may be exported and used by Emergency Medicine residencies to train their rotating residents.
Funding Agency: The Emergency Medicine Foundation, Resident Research Grant
Funding Amount: $1,000
Funding Duration: 07/01/08-06/30/09
