Pediatric residency program accreditation process by the Council for the Accreditation of Education Institutions

Postgraduate medical education as part of a residency system is the best model for specialist training. The accreditation of residency programs entails a harmonization and standardization process. It defines a common and reproducible basis to ensure high-quality training and universal curricular guidelines.

To describe the pediatric residency program accreditation process by the Council for the Accreditation of Education Institutions between January 2011 and July 2017.

The accreditation process was developed according to a reference framework that defined 6 domains and 28 items. Based on compliance, 3 accreditation categories were established. The analysis of accredited residency programs was categorized into 3 geographic regions: province of Buenos Aires, Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA), and other regions. Each analyzed item was dichotomized into noncompliance and partial or total compliance. Categorical outcome measures were expressed in absolute numbers and percentage.

Ninety-four pediatric residency programs were assessed: 34 (36%) corresponded to the province of Buenos Aires; 25 (27 %), to CABA; and 35 (37 %), to other regions. In total, 79 (85 %) were in the public sector. The maximum accreditation category was achieved by 35 (37 %). Four (4 %) were not accredited. Compliance for most items corresponding to the 6 domains was over 80 %.

Most assessed residency programs were accredited and complied with the reference standards. Introducción. La formación médica de posgrado en un sistema de residencias constituye el mejor modelo para la formación de especialistas. La acreditación de residencias implica un proceso de armonización y normalización de criterios. Establece una base común y reproducible, que asegura una formación de calidad y con lineamientos curriculares universales.