New Hospital in Saskatoon

One of the major highlights for our program, the U of S and for the citizens of Saskatchewan is our new Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital (JPCH) that opened on September 30th, 2019.  Of most importance to us is the new state of the art Adult Emergency Department and Pediatric Emergency Department.  And of course, the STARS helipad on the roof of the new building allowing for a 2-minute transfer to the resuscitation bay!  This is a great time to complete your residency here with us.

A Robust Program of Assessment

Each resident is assigned an EM Faculty Academic Advisor (AA) and a Longitudinal Supervisor/Mentor.  When on EM rotations, residents work at least a couple of shifts with each of these physicians who are able to provide insightful feedback on their progress through repeated longitudinal exposure.  Residents will collect EPA (Entrustable Professional Activity) assessments during their rotations.  Each quarter, residents will review all of their assessment data (EPAs, exam scores, other assessment data) fill out a self-assessment form on their progress and have a meeting with their Academic Advisor to review their progress.  AAs have been trained in a local coaching model based on the self-regulated learning theory to help residents set goals for the next quarter.  The resident and AA submit a report to the Competence Committee (CC).  One CC member completes primary review of the resident’s assessment data, as well as the self-assessment and AA report.  They present their findings to the CC members for discussion and recommendations for progress decision.  Targeted learning goals are summarized.  The Program Directors meet with each resident shortly after the CC meeting to share their progress decision and learning plan.  The summary of their progress and learning plan are sent to the AA and Longitudinal Supervisor/Mentor for focused coaching on shift.

Distributive Learning

The College of Medicine, while physically located in Saskatoon, is a provincial resource in attitude and in practice. Postgraduate medical education at the University of Saskatchewan takes seriously its role in supporting quality health care to all people of the province. This means training physicians to meet the needs of, not only urban populations, but also those of rural and remote populations. In so doing, the College of Medicine has developed, and continues to develop, rotations in Regina and other communities. These rotations are designed to provide educational experiences to enhance the resident’s knowledge and skills, and take maximum advantage of unique educational opportunities in a diversity of communities. All postgraduate programs are expected to develop and incorporate into their curriculum, rotations in communities other than Saskatoon. The manner in which each program does this is not strictly prescribed by the College of Medicine – but is determined by the Residency Training Committee, taking into consideration the needs of their residents, and the excellent opportunities available in other locations. These rotations continue to evolve as we seek to build stronger and better programs.

Extensive support is available for out of town rotations. The exact nature of this support varies with location and program. The communities involved, individual programs, the College of Medicine, and the Ministry of Health work collaboratively to ensure residents are not financially disadvantaged by the need to relocate.

For residents assigned to short term rotations in Regina, fully furnished private apartments are provided (laundry facilities, wi-fi, cable TV) and are located in close proximity to the Regina General Hospital. Family friendly and pet friendly housing is available.

What are the program’s strengths?

We take pride in having national leaders in areas such as medical education, ultrasound, and pre-hospital medicine/emergency medical services. As a small program, we also encourage our residents to seek out opportunities for advancement where they are available and provide them with resources to pursue additional training in those areas of interest.

What is mentorship like at the U of S?

Each resident is assigned an EM Faculty Academic Advisor (AA) and a Longitudinal Supervisor/Mentor.  When on EM rotations, residents work at least a couple of shifts with each of these physicians who are able to provide insightful feedback on their progress through repeated longitudinal exposure.  Residents will collect EPA (Entrustable Professional Activity) assessments during their rotations.  Each quarter, residents will fill out a self-assessment form on their progress and have a meeting with their Academic Advisor to review their progress.  AAs have been trained in a coaching model to help residents set goals for the next quarter.

How is the curriculum structured in CBD?

In PGY-1, residents complete the transition to discipline and foundations of discipline competencies. The resident will spend the majority of the year being exposed to Emergency Medicine in order to develop the framework for acquisition of expertise during off-service rotations. All first-year residents will take a Clinical Research Methodologies Course (CHEP 802.3), which runs on-line in the fall term, and an Indigenous Wellness Course during the winter or spring. Residents are allowed to take up to 4 weeks during their EM blocks over their first two years of residency to dedicate time to their research project. During the first two years of residency, residents will take 3 x 12 hour Toxicology call with PADIS (Poison and Drug Information System). Residents are also enrolled in the IMAGE SIM, an on-line self-directed Pediatric Imaging Learning system and are expected to complete the modules during their Peds EM rotations, during the Foundations phase of training.

PGY-2 to PGY-4 consist of the core of discipline competencies. The majority of off-service rotations occur at this time. Residents will ideally present their research project at our annual research day near the end of the academic year in PGY2 or 3. Two longitudinal rotations will occur (EMS and Education) in this year. Residents are given a slight reduction in their shift load during EM rotations in order to carry out the learning activities of these longitudinal rotations. There are elective opportunities in PGY3 & 4 ro pursue areas of interest.

In PGY-5 residents prepare for transition to practice. Residents will be expected to function as a JR Staff in the ED, and will serve as Chief Residents for the program. They will participate in a longitudinal Administrative rotation, as well as a Transition to Practice workshop series. They will work to develop an Area of Comprehensive Expertise (ACE). This can be in any clinical or academic area that will enhance the practice of Emergency Medicine. If residents are performing well, they can integrate this time longitudinally to work towards a focused training program or Master’s degree.

How does the program incorporate Indigenous health into its curriculum?

We are fortunate to work closely with our indigenous population and have a high volume of indigenous patients at our training sites. In order to help our residents become culturally competent providers, our PGY-1s are enrolled in “The Role of Practitioners in Indigenous Wellness” course. This award-winning on-line course runs over a 3-month period during the PGY1 year.