August 7, 2000

Starting any new job can be both exciting and anxiety-filled, but for new residents and fellows at the MGH, the experience can be overwhelming. Not only are they starting new jobs, but for most this is their first experience as a medical doctor. This will be their first time directly caring for patients under close supervision; their first time working long shifts on the clinical "front lines;" and for many it is their first time working in the oldest and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School.

During July, more than 200 interns, residents and fellows participated in the orientation process at the MGH, spending a full day learning about hospital policies, departments and resources before going to their individual departments for even more training.

Through all the chaos associated with orientation, these employees learn about a resource they will come to rely on during their entire training at the MGH – the Graduate Medical Education (GME) office.

Led by Debra Weinstein, MD, Partners director of GME, and coordinated by Georgi Bland, the GME office works with program directors and coordinators from various departments to provide support to residents and fellows.

"The MGH offers a vast array of residency and fellowship programs that face a variety of common challenges," says Weinstein. "The GME office helps program leadership and individual trainees navigate problems they may face. And above all, we advocate for the MGH's educational mission."

Among the support programs the GME office provides is an annual Partners House Staff Core Curriculum Retreat. This half-day, off-campus event is for interns and first-year specialty residents. It includes training on topics common to all residents – such as medical ethics, medical-legal issues and effective communication with patients – subjects not always found in textbooks. Periodic lectures about topics such as human resource issues and financial planning complement the core curriculum. Last October, the GME office helped initiate the new Partners Society of Fellows by collaborating with colleagues at BWH on a half-day retreat for fellows.

The GME office also supports the program directors and coordinators who administer the teaching programs. Because their roles are becoming more complex, the GME office provides support through workshops about topics such as maintaining accreditation, supporting residents with personal or professional difficulties, recruitment and mentoring.

The GME office works to maximize communication between hospital leadership and the trainees. "It is important for residents and fellows to have a voice beyond the boundaries of their programs," says Weinstein. "They spend an enormous amount of time in the hospital and have a great vantage point to provide key observations and suggestions." Periodic town meetings hosted by the GME office offer residents and fellows an opportunity to ask questions and make suggestions to hospital leaders. In addition, residents and fellows are appointed to a variety of hospital committees, most notably the Executive Committee on Teaching and Education, chaired by Isaac Schiff, MD, chief of the MGH Vincent Obstetrics and Gynecology Service.

Weinstein also represents Partners nationally as a member of the Association of American Medical Colleges' Group on Resident Affairs, which she chaired last year. She is a member of several national task forces that are focusing on issues such as re-engineering GME in clinical settings; reassessing the number of residents being trained and clarifying commitments between house staff and teaching hospitals. She also serves as the hospital's liaison to the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, a national organization that reviews and accredits many specialty and subspecialty teaching programs.