Peer-Debriefing After Distressing Patient Care Events: A Workshop for Pediatric Residents

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Physician Well-being
• Psychology

Background:

• Distressing patient care events can lead to physician burnout and career dissatisfaction.
• Resident physicians, early in their careers, are particularly vulnerable to the emotional impact of such events.
• A need exists for effective strategies to support physicians in processing these experiences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a workshop for pediatric residents focused on emotional processing of distressing patient care events.
• To train residents in a peer-debriefing model adapted from bereavement counseling.
• To enhance residents' communication and emotional processing skills.

Main Methods:

• A 60-minute workshop was designed for pediatric residents.
• The workshop utilized a peer-debriefing model and included practice sessions with real patient care scenarios.
• Pre- and post-workshop surveys assessed residents' comfort and likelihood of leading debriefing sessions.

Main Results:

• Statistically significant increases were observed in residents' self-reported comfort levels with leading peer-debriefing sessions.
• Residents reported a higher likelihood of initiating peer debriefing after the workshop.
• The intervention was well-received by participants.

Conclusions:

• The peer-debriefing workshop is an effective intervention for pediatric residents to process distressing patient care events.
• The workshop has been integrated into the residency curriculum, demonstrating its value.
• This model has the potential to be adopted more broadly to support physicians at all career stages.