Designing and Implementing a Competency-Based Training Program for Anesthesiology Residents at the University of...

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Residency Training
• Curricular Reform

Background:

• Traditional time-based medical residency models face challenges.
• Competency-based medical education (CBME) is an outcomes-based approach focusing on demonstrated abilities.
• The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) introduced Competence by Design (CBD) for specialty practice.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide an overview of an innovative competency-based residency training program.
• To offer a blueprint for other institutions planning similar curricular reform.
• To detail the structure and changes within a competency-based program.

Main Methods:

• The program is structured according to RCPSC CBD stages.
• It incorporates all CanMEDS roles.
• Transformational changes were implemented while retaining some traditional elements.

Main Results:

• An innovative competency-based residency program was launched at the University of Ottawa's Department of Anesthesiology.
• The program began July 1, 2015, prior to the wider RCPSC CBD rollout.
• The program design addresses all CanMEDS roles within the CBD framework.

Conclusions:

• Competency-based medical education represents a significant shift from traditional training.
• This program serves as a model for implementing CBME and curricular reform.
• The approach emphasizes demonstrated competence over time-based progression.