It seems that for many, Thanksgiving is a time for reflection. There are many things, some personal - some collective, for which to give thanks. In the spirit of reflection, I'd like to give some updates on past posts and see where we are now in the OGME worlds.
It has been some time since my last post! I was hit by the confluence of MBA residency, two sons and a daughter headed back to school and the realities of a turn in my professional life. But, enough about me...I'm back for now!
In an earlier post, I noted that there were a multitude of AOA standard's changes up for comment. These included the changes to the standards for Osteopathic Postgraduate Training Institutions (OPTIs). This were subsequently approved by the AOA's Council on Postgraduate Training (COPT) at their November meeting. There, for better or for worse, were few comments. While I'm sure that some will come back and wonder the who, why, when and where of these standards changes, little can be said about the transparency of the process.
I have noted several times that I participated in a conference on the future of graduate medical education in the United States in May. This was sponsored by the Macy Foundation. The report from this conference was published online and the monograph has been printed. There has been quite a bit of discussion in both the lay press and the medical media on this report. The Federal government's Council on Graduate Medical Education discussed this at their most recent meeting.
In October the ACGME published proposed changes to their Common Program Requirements. The changes would require ACGME (or Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada) accredited training as a prerequisite for further ACGME training. This would significant alter several ACGME residency programs' practices, such as Family Medicine, Radiology and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residencies. It would also significantly impact fellowships in several specialties.
These changes have several potential unintended consequences to GME and physician workforce. There are also several direct consequences to osteopathic trainees. The changes included an impact statement that tangentially questioned the veracity of AOA accreditation of GME. The AODME along with the AOA and AACOM submitted comments on the proposed changes. Many other organizations, both within and outside the osteopathic community also commented on the proposals negative impact on osteopathic physicians. We all eagerly await the outcome.
As the end of the year holidays come upon us, the AODME has published for approval changes to the organization's by-laws. These changes, which I will discuss in a subsequent post, aim to update the by-laws and the AODME to be in line with the current realities of OGME.
Finally, in a weekend of thanks, I am thankful most for my family. Thanksgiving weekend is always a joy to spend time with my immediate and extended family. I am especially thankful for Ava, Ben, Ethan and Michele! They keep me going through thick and thin!
