One of the unofficial goals of the Annual Educational Conference is to provide so much good content that selecting sessions is a challenge whether you’re a first-time or seasoned attendee! With over 140 exciting, content-rich sessions, full- and half-day pre-conferences, networking opportunities, well-being activities, receptions, and more, there truly is something for everyone, making this conference a unique educational opportunity for all. But while we do want to give you lots of choices, we don’t actually want to overwhelm attendees, so for the first time we’ve pre-identified learning tracks that might appeal to those registering based on their role in GME. These learning tracks are demarcated in the Conference Brochure (beginning on p. 12), but we’ll break them down in the next few posts as well.
COORDINATOR FORUM: Inspiration, Ideation, Impact
Now in its ninth year, the pre-conference Coordinator Forum is annually reviewed by participants as a not-to-miss opportunity for new and experienced coordinators alike. This year’s forum, themed Inspiration, Ideation, Impact, will feature a day-long series of sessions designed for program and institutional coordinators to build knowledge about accreditation, recognition, processes, policies, initiatives, programs, and more. It’s also a wonderful networking setting, with plenaries and break-outs on a wide range of topics selected specifically to enhance coordinator education. It’s a wonderful kick-start to the full Educational Conference! Feedback from 2018 attendees includes:
"Each session offered very valuable information and process improvement ideas that I'm excited to take back to my program and institution. I had several ideas as a result of attending this conference. I really enjoyed the learning opportunities and feel rejuvenated and excited to help my program grow."
"This conference made me feel as though I can do anything. It was a breath of fresh air!"
"I learned quite a bit of information that I found useful to implement in my fellowship programs. As a new program coordinator, I learned a lot that will help me to better manage the programs. An excellent opportunity!!"
CONFERENCE LEARNING TRACK FOR COORDINATORS
With the Coordinator Forum and a number of sessions geared to all attendees, program and institutional coordinator attendees might already have a full schedule. But we’ve identified a few sessions targeting the coordinator audience specifically that are worth looking at more closely.
SES067: Coordinator Plenary: Building Strong Relationships between the GME Office and Programs
This plenary, scheduled for 7:30-9:00 a.m. on Friday morning, March 9 will address the importance of a strong relationship between a program and the institutional GME Office. Panelists will discuss this relationship from their individual institutions’ perspectives.
SES100: Improving your Graduate Medical Education Committee
From 1:30-3:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, participants in this session can learn practical ways to enhance and strengthen their Sponsoring Institution’s GMEC. A guided tour of the Institutional Requirements with an eye toward achieving and maintaining compliance, and opportunities to share personal experiences and successes will be featured.
SES120: The CLER Program: Insights for Program Coordinators
Also on Saturday afternoon, from 2:15-3:00, this session will introduce program coordinators to the ACGME’s Clinical Learning Environment Review Program and the CLER site visit process. Program-level approaches to improving patient safety, care quality, and other areas of focus to the CLER Program will be discussed.
This is just a sampling, of course. There are many more sessions and opportunities for coordinators at this year’s Annual Educational Conference. And Don’t forget to build in time to visit the Exhibit Hall and walk through the posters on display. Note that in the brochure, target audiences for each session are noted below each session description.
Remember! Early Bird registration ends January 4, 2019! Complete your registration soon!
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Our next post will highlight another role-specific learning track – stay tuned!