Implementation of a Clinical Leadership Curriculum for Pediatric Residents

Daniel H Mai; Heather Newton; Peter R Farrell; Paul Mullan; Rupa Kapoor

doi:10.1177/23821205221096354

Implementation of a Clinical Leadership Curriculum for Pediatric Residents

J Med Educ Curric Dev. 2022 Apr 28:9:23821205221096354. doi: 10.1177/23821205221096354. eCollection 2022 Jan-Dec.

Authors

Daniel H Mai¹, Heather Newton^{1

2}, Peter R Farrell^{2

3

4

5}, Paul Mullan^{2

3}, Rupa Kapoor^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ School of Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA.
² Department of Pediatrics, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA.
³ Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters, Norfolk, VA, USA.
⁴ Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, Cincinnati Children's Hospital, Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
⁵ Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.

Abstract

Introduction: Clinical leadership is an essential skill for physicians, empowering them to lead and coordinate teams, communicate clearly under various conditions, model positive behaviors, display emotional intelligence, and ultimately improve patient care outcomes. However, there are currently no standardized residency curricula or competency-based assessments for clinical leadership, as residents often assimilate leadership skills through trial-and-error or observation of their clinical faculty. By utilizing a comprehensive needs assessment and synthesizing evidence-based practices, we developed and implemented a longitudinal and skills-based clinical leadership curriculum for pediatric residents.

Methods: We modeled our clinical leadership curriculum after Kern's 6-step approach to curricular development and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education competency requirements for professionalism. We identified topics based on a resident needs assessment and synthesized evidence from published practices. The curriculum was implemented through both monthly facilitated group sessions and independent learning modules.

Results: 44 postgraduate year-2 (PGY-2) and PGY-3 pediatric residents participated in at least one monthly session of the clinical leadership curriculum. 27 (61%) completed the survey to evaluate the efficacy of the curriculum. Of the respondents, 23 (85%) residents found the leadership sessions useful, 4 (15%) were neutral, and none (0%) rated the sessions as not useful. 26 (96%) residents reported that the sessions should be continued.

Conclusion: The clinical leadership curriculum has been received favorably by senior pediatric residents at our institution. Our next steps are to pilot the curriculum within residency programs of different specialties at our own institution as well as with pediatric residencies at other institutions.

Keywords: Clinical leadership; Curriculum Implementation; Graduate Medical Education; Leadership Curriculum; Professional Development; Resident Leadership.