Development of an integrated competency framework for postgraduate paediatric training: a Delphi study.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Paediatric Training

Background:

• Competency-based education (CBE) is transforming medical training.
• Multiple competency frameworks are currently used in Flanders for paediatric postgraduate CBE.
• A unified framework can streamline training, assessment, and certification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To merge existing competency frameworks into a single, integrated framework for paediatric postgraduate training in Flanders.
• To validate this unified framework using a Delphi study.

Main Methods:

• Scrutinizing and merging three existing competency frameworks using the CanMEDS framework as a basis.
• Conducting a three-round Delphi study with expert validation.
• Analyzing the relevance, applicability, and suitability of competencies across different clinical settings.

Main Results:

• A unified competency framework comprising 95 competencies was developed.
• All competencies were deemed relevant in the first round of the Delphi study.
• Twelve competencies were adjusted in the second round, with all competencies validated by the third round.

Conclusions:

• An integrated and validated competency framework for paediatric postgraduate training has been established.
• This framework can guide curriculum planning and workplace learning goal setting.
• Recognizing the influence of diverse clinical settings on competency relevance is crucial for effective implementation.