AMA announces new initiative supporting ‘meaningful improvements’ to residency training

AMA recently announced that it will award $15 million in grant funding over the next 5 years to training programs that discuss the changing needs of patients, communities and the workforce needs of the current and future health care system.

AMA leaders said their new Reimagining Residency initiative seeks to smooth the transition from medical school to residency to preserve continuity in professional development, assure readiness for practice through changes of residency curricula and optimize the learning environment to support well-being among trainees, mentors and staff.

“This represents yet another milestone in medical education with the goal of producing young doctors that are adaptive learners, capable team leaders and have a greater sense of their role in the health care system,” James L. Madara, MD, AMA CEO and executive vice president, said in a press conference.

Susan E. Skochelak, MD, AMA’s group vice president of medical education, said the current system has regulatory concerns, resource limitations and structural issues that hinder advances in residency training and necessitate a different approach.

“This new effort is part of the evolution of the AMA’s continued push to address the gap between how our future physicians are being trained and the skills that they need to practice in our modern health care system,” she said in the conference call. “This new effort will [also] ensure that residents are learning the skills they need to hit the ground running as soon as they complete their residency.”

According to a press release, letters of intent for the Reimaging Residency initiative will be accepted from Jan. 3 through Feb. 1, 2019. U.S. graduate medical education sponsors, medical schools, health systems and/or medical specialty societies are eligible. AMA will choose a select group of organizations to provide full proposals by April 17, then will review the submitted materials, and announce up to eight grant recipients during its annual meeting in June 2019.

These recipients will then work with AMA to discuss the pros and cons of their initiatives and help oversee the implementation of the selected initiatives on a larger scale in the medical community, Skochelak said.

The announcement is the AMA’s latest initiative to create the medical schools of the future and train students with knowledge relevant to the 21st century, according to Madara.

Earlier strategies include collaborating with Mayo Clinic to weave scientific discoveries, new technologies and health care reforms into the health care system and writing the Health Systems Science textbook to help health care providers navigate value-based care health systems. AMA has also previously partnered with the Regenstrief Institute to ensure more medical students and medical trainees gain real-world experience using electronic health records during their training. – by Janel Miller

Disclosures: Madara and Skochelak work for AMA.

For more information: AMA-Assn.org. “AMA Reimagining Residency Initiative.” https://www.ama-assn.org/education/ama-reimagining-residency-initiative. Accessed Oct. 30, 2018.