Understanding resident wellness: A path analysis of the clinical learning environment at three institutions.

PURPOSE: The clinical learning environment (CLE) affects resident physician well-being. This study assessed how aspects of the learning environment affected the level of resident job stress and burnout. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three institutions surveyed residents assessing aspects of the CLE and well-being via anonymous survey in fall of 2020 during COVID. Psychological safety (PS) and perceived organizational support (POS) were used to capture the CLE, and the Mini-Z Scale was used to assess resident job stress and burnout. A total of 2,196 residents received a survey link; 889 responded (40% response rate). Path analysis explored both direct and indirect relationships between PS, POS, resident stress, and resident burnout. RESULTS: Both POS and PS had significant negative relationships with experiencing a great deal of job stress; the relationship between PS and stress was noticeably stronger than POS and stress (POS: B= -0.12, p=.025; PS: B= -0.37, p<.001). The relationship between stress and residents' level of burnout was also significant (B = 0.38, p<.001). The overall model explained 25% of the variance in resident burnout. CONCLUSIONS: Organizational support and psychological safety of the learning environment is associated with resident burnout. It is important for educational leaders to recognize and mitigate these factors.

Educational roles impact burnout in paediatric undergraduate medical educators.

BACKGROUND: Physician burnout impacts all levels of medical education and has a relatively unknown impact on those responsible for medical student education, particularly in paediatrics. This study examines the prevalence of burnout among paediatric undergraduate medical educators and explores the impact of roles in medical education on medical educator burnout. METHODS: This cross-sectional mixed-methods study utilised a binational survey of paediatricians involved in undergraduate medical education. Respondents answered demographics, standardised questions about burnout and attitudes towards students, and an open-ended probe about interactions between medical student education and wellness. FINDINGS: Of 445 possible, 120 (26.9%) responded to demographic and burnout questions. Of these, 23.3% endorsed burnout, 21.7% high emotional exhaustion (EE) and 10.8% high depersonalisation (DP). High levels of student-related burnout symptoms were reported by fewer than 5% of respondents and were correlated with overall EE and DP. Content analysis revealed four emergent themes: positive effect of student-related role, need to balance medical education and clinical roles, impact of protected time and medical education-related autonomy on educator well-being, and the burden of the administrative portion of educational roles. DISCUSSION: Participating paediatric educators had low rates of burnout compared with paediatricians as a whole in prior studies. The vast majority found working with students rewarding and described the overall positive impact of their medical education role on wellness. CONCLUSION: Physician involvement in rewarding non-clinical activities may improve their overall well-being. Providing dedicated time for these activities may ameliorate the difficulty that many medical educators described in balancing their clinical and educational roles. Future studies should continue to explore how we can better support medical educators and the impact of this support on burnout.

Clinical Decision Support Tool for Elevated Pediatric Blood Pressures.

Under-diagnosis of pediatric hypertension remains pervasive due to difficulty recognizing elevated systolic blood pressures (SBPs). We performed a retrospective review comparing recognition of and response to elevated SBPs ≥95th percentile before and after development of a clinical decision support tool (CDST) in an academic pediatric system. Of 44,351 encounters, 477 had elevated SBPs with documented recognition of an elevated SBP in 17.9% of encounters pre-CDST that increased to 33.7% post-CDST (P = .001). Post-CDST, 75.5% of elevated SBPs had repeat measurement, with 90.8% of initially elevated SBPs normalizing to <95th percentile. If repeat measurement was obtained and SBP remained elevated, documented recognition increased from 14.0 to 83.3% (P < .0001). These data support using the CDST is associated with increased identification of elevated SBPs in children with greatest improvements associated with repeat SBP measurement. This suggests targeted training and support systems at medical intake would be high yield for increasing recognition of elevated SBP.

Operational Constraints and Gender Biases: A Qualitative Analysis of Physician Parenting Experiences.

Objective: Although parenting responsibilities are correlated with gender disparities in professional development and salary, the nature of parental challenges is not well characterized. The aims of this study were to (1) illuminate faculty physicians' experiences with parenting and (2) identify system challenges and opportunities for improvement. Materials and Methods: In October 2019, a survey about parenting was sent to all physician faculty at a large Midwest academic medical center. Qualitative analysis of free-text response to the survey item "is there anything you wish to share about your experience of pregnancy or parenting as a physician" was performed. Themes were inductively identified and developed from the responses in a team-based iterative approach. Results: Of 2069 total physician faculty, 1085 (52.4%) responded to the survey and 253 (23%) of the respondents provided free-text comments. From these comments, the authors identified three themes as sources of challenges for physician parents: operational constraints, gender biases, and nontraditional or nonheteronormative family structures. Operational factors pertained to lack of scheduling flexibility, childcare challenges, lactation, colleague coverage, and transparency of policies. Responses indicated that gender biases are encountered by all genders, and expectations built on assumptions of "traditional" gender roles and family structure are problematic for many physician parents. Conclusion: Addressing the challenges and opportunities identified in the study is critical to building a more supportive institutional culture around parenting and to increase gender parity in academic medicine.

Speaker Introductions at Grand Rounds: Differences in Formality of Address by Gender and Specialty.

Background: Despite increasing representation of women in medicine, gender bias remains pervasive. The authors sought to evaluate speaker introductions by gender in the grand rounds of multiple specialties at a large academic institution to understand the cultural context of this behavior and identify predictors of formality. Materials and Methods: The authors reviewed grand rounds recordings of speakers with doctorates presenting to the departments of family medicine, general surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, and pediatrics at one institution from 2014 to 2019. The primary outcome was whether a speaker's professional title was used as the first form of address. The authors assessed factors correlated with professional introduction using multivariable logistic regression. Results: Speakers were introduced professionally in 346/615 recordings (56.3%). Female introducers were more likely to introduce speakers professionally (odds ratio [OR]: 2.52). A significant interaction existed between speaker gender and home institution: female speakers visiting from an external institution were less likely than male external speakers to be introduced professionally (OR: 0.49), whereas female speakers internal to the institution were more likely to be introduced professionally than male internal speakers (OR: 1.75). Use of professional titles varied by specialty and was higher than average for family medicine (83.2%), surgery (75.8%), and pediatrics (64.0%) and lower for internal medicine (37.5%) and obstetrics and gynecology (50.7%). Conclusions: These findings suggest a complex relationship between gender and formality of introduction that merits further investigation. Understanding differences in culture across specialties is important to inform efforts to promote equity.

Nurse/Resident Reciprocal Shadowing to Improve Interprofessional Communication.

OBJECTIVES: Poor communication is a major contributor to sentinel events in hospitals. Suboptimal communication between physicians and nurses may be due to poor understanding of team members' roles. We sought to evaluate the impact of a shadowing experience on nurse-resident interprofessional collaboration, bidirectional communication, and role perceptions. METHODS: This mixed-methods study took place at 2 large academic children's hospitals with pediatric residency programs during the 2018-2019 academic year. First-year residents and nurses participated in a reciprocal, structured 4-hour shadowing experience. Participants were surveyed before, immediately after, and 6 months after their shadowing experience by using an anonymous web-based platform containing the 20-item Interprofessional Collaborative Competency Attainment Survey, as well as open-ended qualitative questions. Quantitative data were analyzed via linear mixed models. Qualitative data were thematically analyzed. RESULTS: Participants included 33 nurses and 53 residents from the 2 study sites. The immediate postshadowing survey results revealed statistically significant improvements in 12 Interprofessional Collaborative Competency Attainment Survey question responses for nurses and 19 for residents (P ≤ .01). Subsequently, 6 questions for nurses and 17 for residents revealed sustained improvements 6 months after the intervention. Qualitative analysis identified 5 major themes related to optimal nurse-resident engagement: effective communication, collaboration, role understanding, team process, and patient-centered. CONCLUSIONS: The reciprocal shadowing experience was associated with an increase in participant understanding of contributions from all interprofessional team members. This improved awareness may improve patient care. Future work may be conducted to assess the impact of spread to different clinical areas and elucidate patient outcomes that may be associated with this intervention.

Adopting otitis media practice guidelines increases adherence within a large primary care network.

AIM: Unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions to treat otitis media (OM) contribute to adverse drug reactions, increased cost and antibiotic resistance. Clinical care guidelines can help promote consistent treatment of conditions such as OM. This study evaluates adherence before and after implementation of an institutional guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of paediatric OM. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed to collect encounter information for paediatric patients seen within a primary care clinic network and diagnosed with OM before and after full implementation of a clinical care guideline. Patient cohorts from 2013 and 2016 were compared to determine which factors, including age, symptoms and diagnosis, were associated with treatment guideline adherence. RESULTS: Comparison of encounters from 2013 (n = 418) to 2016 (n = 635) revealed a significant difference in adherence to the 2013 Michigan Medicine Otitis Media Guideline. Overall adherence increased from 61.2% in 2013 to 70.6% in 2016 (χ2  = 9.85, P < 0.0017). Antibiotic use for acute OM decreased from 99.7% in 2013 to 96.7% in 2016 (χ2  = 10.04, P = 0.0015). Antibiotic prescriptions for OM with effusion decreased significantly from 42.9% in 2013 to 17.4% in 2016 (χ2  = 11.93, P < 0.0006). CONCLUSION: Implementation of an institutional OM clinical practice guideline contributed to a significant increase in overall treatment adherence of OM for paediatric patients between the 2013 and 2016 cohorts. The number of antibiotic prescriptions for paediatric patients diagnosed with acute OM or OM with effusion significantly decreased from 2013 to 2016.

Incidence of resident mistreatment in the learning environment across three institutions.

INTRODUCTION: Mistreatment in the learning environment is associated with negative outcomes for trainees. While the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) annual Graduation Questionnaire (GQ) has collected medical student reports of mistreatment for a decade, there is not a similar nationally benchmarked survey for residents. The objective of this study is to explore the prevalence of resident experiences with mistreatment. METHODS: Residents at three academic institutions were surveyed using questions similar to the GQ in 2018. Quantitative data were analyzed based on frequency and Mann-Whitney U tests to detect gender differences. RESULTS: Nine hundred ninety-six of 2682 residents (37.1%) responded to the survey. Thirty-nine percent of residents reported experiencing at least one incident of mistreatment. The highest reported incidents were public humiliation (23.7%) and subject to offensive sexist remarks/comments (16.0%). Female residents indicated experiencing significantly more incidents of public embarrassment, public humiliation, offensive sexist remarks, lower evaluations based on gender, denied opportunities for training or rewards, and unwanted sexual advances. Faculty were the most frequent instigators of mistreatment (66.4%). Of trainees who reported experiencing mistreatment, less than one-quarter reported the behavior. CONCLUSION: Mistreatment in the academic learning environment is a concern in residency programs. There is increased frequency among female residents.

Implementing Resident Team Assistant Programs at Academic Medical Centers: Lessons Learned.

BACKGROUND: Excessive inpatient administrative tasks can lead to adverse consequences for residents and their patients. Furthermore, this burden has been linked to depersonalization, a major component of physician burnout. OBJECTIVE: To describe the development, implementation, feasibility, acceptability, and early outcomes of Resident Team Assistant (RTA) programs. METHODS: Three large academic medical centers created RTA programs in which administrative assistants are incorporated into inpatient medical teams. First steps included a needs assessment and driver diagram creation to identify key issues and to solidify goals. Program directors were assigned, and RTAs were hired, trained, and incorporated into inpatient teams at each institution (2003, 2016, 2018). Program leadership and institutional stakeholders met regularly to discuss development and quality assurance. Surveys and direct interviews were performed to evaluate impact and acceptability. Institutional goals in accordance to RTAs tasks were also investigated. RESULTS: Resident surveys and interviews have shown acceptability with RTAs completing a large percentage of resident administrative tasks while promoting time spent in direct clinical care and job satisfaction. Hospital-specific improvements have included increase in referring physician communication rate and decrease in work hour violations. The programs have maintained high feasibility and sustainability with a relatively low time commitment from leadership and cost for the institutions. CONCLUSIONS: The RTA programs at the 3 institutions have continued to be sustained over time with perceived improvements in administrative task burden and job satisfaction for the residents. They have maintained high acceptability and feasibility in terms of effort and costs for the hospitals.

Differing Experiences with Breastfeeding in Residency Between Mothers and Coresidents.

Background: Returning to work and lack of support for expressing breast milk (pumping) at work is often cited as a reason that mothers discontinue breastfeeding, particularly among female physicians. It is unclear how these perceived difficulties affect resident mothers and how resident teams perceive coresidents who choose to pump at work. The goal of this study was to identify differences in perception of resident mothers and their coresidents about breastfeeding residents pumping. Materials and Methods: An online survey in 2017 was sent to 413 residents in Pediatrics, Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, and Anesthesia at the University of Michigan Health System. Results: A total of 82 residents completed the survey (20% response rate). Resident mothers (15% of respondents self-identified as a mother) were asked specific questions regarding their experiences with breastfeeding. Almost all mothers (92%) encountered difficulty in breastfeeding after returning to work. The majority of mothers reported that their mood was affected by these difficulties (85%). The most common challenge that breastfeeding residents encountered was not enough time to pump. The majority of all residents surveyed (74%) have worked with a breastfeeding resident. Forty percent of breastfeeding residents felt that their pumping adversely affected the team, whereas only 10% of coresidents felt the same. Conclusions: Breastfeeding residents encountered significant difficulties that affected their well-being when breastfeeding while returning to work. They also felt that their pumping can be detrimental to their job. However, their coresidents felt that pumping had no major setbacks to team efficiency or patient care and did not create additional work.

Lotus Birth: A Case Series Report on Umbilical Nonseverance.

Lotus birth is the practice of leaving the umbilical cord uncut until separation occurs naturally. Our case series report describes delivery characteristics, neonatal clinical course, cord and placenta management, maternal reasons for a lotus birth, and desire for future lotus births. Between April 2014 and January 2017, six lotus births occurred. Mothers (four of the six) were contacted by phone after giving birth. A chart review was completed on each patient to evaluate if erythromycin ointment, hepatitis B vaccine, and vitamin K (intramuscular or oral) were administered, treatment of the placenta, maternal group B streptococcus status, postnatal infant fevers, infant hemoglobin or hematocrit levels, jaundice requiring phototherapy, and infant readmissions. Three of the six families decided to cut the cord before hospital discharge. No infections were noted. All contacted mothers would elect for a lotus birth again (4/6). One hepatitis B vaccine was given; all others declined perinatal immunization.

Responsible Milestone-Based Educational Handover With Individualized Learning Plan From Undergraduate to Graduate Pediatric Medical Education.

Communication of medical students' pediatric milestone assessments and individual learning plans from medical schools to pediatric residency directors allows for effective educational handovers promoting the continuum of education. Existing undergraduate medical education assessments can provide meaningful data to determine most pediatric milestone levels.

Pediatric Emergency Department Resource Utilization among Children with Primary Care Clinic Contact in the Preceding 2 Days: A Cross-Sectional Study.

OBJECTIVES: To characterize pediatric patient contacts with their primary care clinic in the 2 days preceding a visit to the emergency department (ED) and explore how the type of clinic contact relates to ED resource use. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a retrospective chart review of 368 pediatric ED visits in the first 7 days of each month, from September 2012 to August 2013. Visits were included if the family contacted their child's general pediatric clinic in the study health system in the 2 days preceding the ED visit. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Primary outcomes were ED resource use (tests, treatments) and disposition (admission or discharge). Outcomes by type of clinic contact were compared with χ2 statistics. RESULTS: Of 1116 records with ED visits in the 12 study weeks extracted from the electronic medical record, 368 ED visits met inclusion criteria. Most ED visits followed a single clinic contact (78.8%). Of the 474 clinic contacts, 149 were in-person visits, 216 phone calls when clinic was open, and 109 phone calls when clinic was closed. ED visits that followed an in-person clinic contact with advice to go to the ED had significantly greater rates of testing and admission than those advised to go to the ED after phone contact and those never advised to go to the ED. CONCLUSIONS: In-person clinic visits with advice to go to the ED were associated with the greatest ED resource use. Limitations include a study of a single health system without a uniform process for triaging patients to the ED across clinics.

Otitis media: diagnosis and treatment.

Acute otitis media is diagnosed in patients with acute onset, presence of middle ear effusion, physical evidence of middle ear inflammation, and symptoms such as pain, irritability, or fever. Acute otitis media is usually a complication of eustachian tube dysfunction that occurs during a viral upper respiratory tract infection. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis are the most common organisms isolated from middle ear fluid. Management of acute otitis media should begin with adequate analgesia. Antibiotic therapy can be deferred in children two years or older with mild symptoms. High-dose amoxicillin (80 to 90 mg per kg per day) is the antibiotic of choice for treating acute otitis media in patients who are not allergic to penicillin. Children with persistent symptoms despite 48 to 72 hours of antibiotic therapy should be reexamined, and a second-line agent, such as amoxicillin/clavulanate, should be used if appropriate. Otitis media with effusion is defined as middle ear effusion in the absence of acute symptoms. Antibiotics, decongestants, or nasal steroids do not hasten the clearance of middle ear fluid and are not recommended. Children with evidence of anatomic damage, hearing loss, or language delay should be referred to an otolaryngologist.