Effective and dedicated educators are critical to the preservation and advancement of the practice of radiology. The need for innovative and adaptable educators is increasingly being recognized, with several institutions granting academic promotions through clinician-educator tracks. The implementation of resident “clinician-educator tracks” or “teaching tracks” should better prepare residents aspiring to become academic radiologists focused on teaching. In this work, we describe our experience in the development and implementation of a clinician-educator track for diagnostic radiology residents at our institution.
Introduction
Exceptional clinical care, high-quality research, and transformative teaching remain at the crux of academic medicine and academic radiology. Underscoring the importance of dedicated and effective radiology educators, faculty clinician-educator tracks (CETs) for promotion are increasingly being recognized in many academic institutions . Faculty members on these tracks rely primarily on their recognized expertise as clinical radiologists and educators locally and beyond to qualify for academic promotion . At our institution for instance, clinician-educators are promoted through the Medical Educator and Service Track (for faculty hired before September 1, 2015), which requires teaching of medical students, residents, fellows, biomedical graduate students, and other trainees .
Reflecting the needs of aspiring academic radiologists, many radiology residency programs have also instituted pathways or tracks for residents to help focus on individual residents’ academic interests and goals. Like many academic programs, our institution has a well-established resident research track . While we believe that research tracks remain the most common and most prominent track available for diagnostic radiology (DR) residents, radiology residency CETs have also been described . Similar teaching-centered tracks for residents have also been described in other subspecialties, including emergency medicine, internal medicine, and general surgery, among others .
In this communication, we discuss our experience with developing and implementing a CET for radiology residents.
Guiding Principles and Goals
Our CET curriculum was developed to complement and supplement, not supplant, traditional radiology residency educational objectives. Mirroring our institution’s research track , the CET is anchored on three main operating goals: (1) to deliver uncompromised training in clinical radiology, (2) to provide a structured opportunity to excel in education in medicine in general and radiology in particular, and (3) to cultivate and develop proficiencies that will lead to a successful career in academic radiology that includes a focus on teaching.
Implementation and Administration
The CET is steered and managed by the CET Committee, which consists of two faculty advisors and two senior CET residents, as chosen by the faculty advisors yearly. The CET Committee reports directly to both the DR residency program director and ultimately to the Vice Chair for Education of our department.
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Recruitment and Admissions Process
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Clinician-Educator Track Curriculum Structure
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TABLE 1
Integration of Clinical and Academic Responsibilities within the Clinician-Educator Track (CET)
Year 1 (R1) Year 2 (R2) Year 3 (R3) Year 4 (R4)CET responsibilities Select mentor(s) Start teaching practicum Continue scholarly activities with priority focused on clinical responsibilities and preparation for the ABR Core Exam Assumption of CET Committee membership (as appropriate) Organize teaching practicum experience Start Capstone Project Continue scholarly activities Begin to formulate Capstone Project Complete annual CET Committee review Complete annual CET Committee review Prepare and submit manuscript(s) complete Capstone Project Complete annual CET Committee review Complete final CET Committee reviewClinical responsibilities Completion of first year core curriculum Completion of second year core curriculum Completion of third year core curriculum Completion of individualized fourth year curriculum Assumption of first year call responsibilities Assumption of senior call responsibilities Continuation of call responsibilities Continuation of call responsibilities ABR In-training Exam ABR In-training Exam Preparation and completion of ABR Core Exam ABR In-training Exam ABR In-training ExamAcademic time 1 d/mo during clinical rotations for SGS and scholarly projects 1 d/mo during clinical rotations for SGS, scholarly projects, and teaching activities 1 d/mo during clinical rotations for SGS, scholarly projects, and teaching activities 1 d/mo during clinical rotations for SGS, scholarly projects, and teaching activities Up to one 2-wk block of protected academic time with approved project Up to one 2-wk block of protected academic time with approved project Up to two 2-wk blocks of protected academic time with approved project
CET, clinician-educator track; SGS, small group series.
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Small Group Series: Building on Theory
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TABLE 2
Sample List of Small Group Sessions
CET, clinician-educator track.
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Teaching Practicum: From Theory to Practice
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Capstone Project: Putting It All Together
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Focused Peer and Faculty Mentoring
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Academic Days
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Clinical Radiology Training
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Evaluations and Success Criteria
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Challenges to Implementation
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Initial Outcomes
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Conclusions
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Supplementary Data
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Appendix S1
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Appendix S2
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Appendix S3
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References
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