Intern Passport: Orienting New Travelers to the Emergency Department

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Emergency Medicine
• Healthcare Administration

Background:

• Incoming interns require comprehensive orientation to navigate complex emergency department (ED) environments.
• Understanding diverse personnel roles and available assets is crucial for effective intern performance.
• Existing orientation methods may lack structure in defining interdisciplinary contributions within the ED.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a structured Intern Passport (IP) curriculum for emergency department (ED) interns.
• To effectively define and distinguish various personnel and assets within the ED for new interns.
• To enhance intern comprehension of roles, capabilities, expectations, and potential challenges in the ED.

Main Methods:

• An on-the-job orientation program utilizing an 'Intern Passport' (IP) system.
• Interns completed 30-minute orientation visits with eight key ED 'countries' (specialist teams).
• Visits covered introductions, tasks, capabilities, expectations, and practical advice; signatures ('stamps') were collected.

Main Results:

• The Intern Passport curriculum was successfully implemented during the initial four-week intern rotation.
• Interns engaged with Adult Nursing, Pediatric Nursing, Orthopedics Technician, Respiratory Therapy, Pharmacy, Psychiatry, Observation, and Radiology.
• Participant feedback from an optional anonymous survey indicated the IP was a beneficial addition to the curriculum.

Conclusions:

• The Intern Passport curriculum effectively defined and distinguished various personnel and assets within the ED.
• This structured orientation method improved intern understanding and integration into the ED team.
• The IP serves as a valuable tool for enhancing intern preparedness in emergency medicine settings.