108 - Developing a Four-Week Research Rotation for First-Year Anesthesiology Residents to Meet ACGME Educational Requirements

Background: In October 2021, the anesthesiology department in a large, academic tertiary hospital, elicited the support and services of the medical library to develop a structured four-week research rotation for first year residents (interns), which would support the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) educational requirements. The primary objective of the intervention is to facilitate the development of research literacy skills that the interns can apply to their assigned active clinical research projects. The secondary objective is to improve the interns’ confidence in participating in a research project upon completing the rotation.

Description: The medical librarians and the clinical research coordinator reviewed the structure of the existing research rotation. Program rotation goals and areas to include library-supported instruction were identified. A literature search was conducted to find example curricula. Based on the findings and the program’s goals, a structured four-week research rotation was created. In November 2021, the rotation started, with a total of four interns scheduled to complete the rotation by May 2022. For one hour, each week, a librarian provides interactive instruction on: accessing library resources, conducting a literature review on the research project topic, critical appraisal, and introductory statistics. Pre- and post-evaluations are used to assess the intern’s familiarity with the research process, library resources, and their confidence in participating in a research project. Feedback from the research coordinator will describe how the research literacy skills were put into practice.

Conclusion:

Results: The results from the pre – and post-evaluations and feedback from the clinical research coordinator suggest a four-week research rotation can improve research literacy skills and confidence for first-year residents. Interns reported increased confidence in all the areas of literature searching that were assessed, however there was little to no improvement in the development of their critical appraisal skills. In the short answer section, all respondents were able to identify the types of resources or support they would need to pursue an independent research project in the future.

Conclusion: Since this program was piloted in the last six months, data will continue to be collected to assess the effectiveness of the program. Additionally, the feedback suggests a similar intervention for residents in years 2-4 of the program may be beneficial and is being considered. Lastly, the curriculum can be adapted to similar residency programs and used to demonstrate the medical library’s contribution in meeting ACGME educational requirements for research and scholarly activity.