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National Pediatrician-Scientist Collaborative Workgroup comment on new ACGME requirements’ impact on pediatric physician-scientists

Pediatric Research volume 95, pages 70–74 (2024)Cite this article

Abstract

Background

The ACGME recently released its recommendation for updates to the program requirements for pediatrics. These updates proposed changes to allocation of resident clinical time and a greater emphasis on individualization. The potential impact of these changes on the training of physician-scientists is discussed.

Methods

Discussion of the proposed changes was held within the members of the National Pediatrician-Scientist Collaborative Workgroup, a group that represents scientists, trainees, program directors, chairs, and physician-scientist educators at nearly 30 residency programs from across the US with a focus on understanding and developing optimal approaches to physician-scientist training. Consideration was given to the both the personal and institutional impact of the proposal for physician-scientist development.

Results

Both threats and opportunities were identified. Key opportunities include the enhanced individualized training time that could be used to explore research. Threats include re-allocation of clinical training time that may strain institutions financially, expand clinical service requirements for other early career stage individuals, and alter exposure to a broad range of pediatric specialists and sub-specialists that impact career development.

Conclusion

The NPSCW encourages consideration of the impact of changing program requirements on physician-scientist development to include ongoing discussion amongst mentors, programs, and trainees to understand and mitigate impact of new program requirements on the development of pediatrician-scientists.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Ian Burr Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA

    Daniel J. Moore

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle Children’s Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA

    Weston Powell

  3. Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA

    Debra Boyer & Katherine Bline

  4. Stead Family Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Lyndsay Harshman

  5. Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Andrew Nowalk

  6. Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, Houston, TX, USA

    Audrea Burns

  7. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Jordan S. Orange

  8. Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA

    Daniel J. Moore

  9. Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA

    Audrea Burns, Audra Nicole Iness, Mark Allen Ward & Satid Thammasitboon

  10. UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Kara L. Calkins

  11. University of Wisconson, Madison, WI, USA

    Emma Mohr

  12. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Bryce Binstadt

  13. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    David Olson

  14. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Danielle Callaway

  15. University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Kelly Harris, Andrew J. Nowalk, Jacqueline Ho & Catherine S. Forster

  16. Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Jacquelyn D. Lajiness & Bobbi J. Byrne

  17. UCSF, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Mel Heyman, Fernando Gonzalez & James Bayrer

  18. Stanford, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    Rebecca Blankenburg & Carrie Rassbach

  19. Seattle Children’s, Seattle, WA, USA

    Tara Wenger & Weston Powell

  20. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Catherine Forster

  21. Washington University, St Louis, MO, USA

    Suong Nguyen & Anthony French

  22. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Michael D. Hogarty

  23. Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Jordan S. Orange

  24. Yale, New Haven, CT, USA

    Pnina Weiss

  25. University of North Carolina, Raleigh, NC, USA

    Ian Davis, Stephanie D. Davis & Misty Good

  26. University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, USA

    Candace Gildner & Kate G. Ackerman

  27. Cornell, New York, NY, USA

    Briana Christophers

  28. Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

    Rasheed Gbadegesin

  29. Columbia, New York, NY, USA

    Valerie A. Almenas

  30. Nationwide Children’s, Washington DC, USA

    Katherine Bline

  31. University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Lyndsay A. Harshman

Authors
  1. Daniel J. Moore
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  2. Weston Powell
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  3. Debra Boyer
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  4. Katherine Bline
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  5. Lyndsay Harshman
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  6. Andrew Nowalk
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  7. Audrea Burns
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  8. Jordan S. Orange
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Consortia

for the NPSCW

  • Daniel J. Moore
  • , Audrea Burns
  • , Kara L. Calkins
  • , Emma Mohr
  • , Bryce Binstadt
  • , David Olson
  • , Danielle Callaway
  • , Kelly Harris
  • , Jacquelyn D. Lajiness
  • , Mel Heyman
  • , Audra Nicole Iness
  • , Rebecca Blankenburg
  • , Carrie Rassbach
  • , Mark Allen Ward
  • , Satid Thammasitboon
  • , Tara Wenger
  • , Weston Powell
  • , Catherine Forster
  • , Suong Nguyen
  • , Michael D. Hogarty
  • , Jordan S. Orange
  • , Pnina Weiss
  • , Ian Davis
  • , Candace Gildner
  • , Bobbi J. Byrne
  • , Anthony French
  • , Fernando Gonzalez
  • , Andrew J. Nowalk
  • , Briana Christophers
  • , Jacqueline Ho
  • , Rasheed Gbadegesin
  • , Catherine S. Forster
  • , Kate G. Ackerman
  • , Stephanie D. Davis
  • , Valerie A. Almenas
  • , Katherine Bline
  • , Lyndsay A. Harshman
  • , Misty Good
  •  & James Bayrer

Contributions

All authors participated in discussion of the proposed ACGME changes and developing a framework for understanding their impact and an outline for the manuscript and its content. D.J.M. wrote the initial draft, which all authors then edited. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Daniel J. Moore.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

D.J.M., W.P., K.B., D.B., L.H., A.N. and A.B. report no financial disclosures. J.S.O. notes that as the physician-in-chief and chair of a large pediatric program that the proposed ACGME changes may present a negative financial impact on his program.

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Moore, D.J., Powell, W., Boyer, D. et al. National Pediatrician-Scientist Collaborative Workgroup comment on new ACGME requirements’ impact on pediatric physician-scientists. Pediatr Res 95, 70–74 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-023-02795-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-023-02795-9

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