The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Pediatric Graduate Medical Education: Lessons Learned and Pathways Forward

Abstract

In this article, the authors describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric graduate medical education (GME), including the impact on clinical experiences for trainees, teaching methods used, trainee wellness, GME leader wellness and support, and the traditional interview process. A thorough literature review was done to identify impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on pediatric GME. In addition, information was collected through Association of Pediatric Program Directors virtual cafes and conferences. Positive changes for GME from the COVID-19 pandemic included: the rapid transition to telehealth; asynchronous learning allowing for increased cross-program collaboration; innovative online teaching modalities; increased flexibility and decreased cost of online recruitment; and shared innovations across pediatric GME. Challenging aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic included: decreased learning about common childhood illnesses, such as bronchiolitis, acute otitis media, and influenza; decreased patient volumes and patient complexity in clinics and inpatient wards, leading to less practice developing efficiency, time management, and triaging skills; and an increased burden on trainees, including moral distress and decreased support from one another and other social supports. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted important opportunities in U.S. educational systems. As medical educators move forward, it will be important to learn from these while mitigating the negative impacts.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Medical Education during Inpatient Internal Medicine Rounds

“…Even so, some alternative rounding practices persist and likely will continue to affect trainee education. 13,14 Perhaps the most revealing findings from this study are the reports of reduced trainee-patient interactions necessitated by pandemicrelated precautions. Such engagement is critical to trainees' development of confidence in patient evaluations and their identity as physicians.…”

“…As PPE and COVID-19 vaccines became accessible, most academic medical centers relaxed limitations on trainee participation in direct patient care and the structure and format of inpatient rounding. Even so, some alternative rounding practices persist and likely will continue to affect trainee education 13,14 . Perhaps the most revealing findings from this study are the reports of reduced trainee–patient interactions necessitated by pandemic-related precautions.…”

Three Years of X + Y Scheduling: Longitudinal Assessment of Resident and Faculty Perceptions

“…The COVID-19 pandemic had a tremendous impact on pediatric graduate medical education. 17 Many programs transitioned to virtual educational offerings, performed telemedicine visits, experienced low inpatient census and fewer well child visits, and many more disruptions. The impact this has on the perception data described here is unfortunately impossible to measure.…”

Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation Conference on COVID-19 and the Impact on Medical and Nursing Education: Conference Recommendations Report

“…Then, in preparation for the July conference, participants were asked to read the 4 student papers as well as 7 more commissioned papers [5][6][7][8][9][10][11] and 5 case studies. [12][13][14][15][16] These were produced by medicine and nursing faculty members, also reflecting on the pandemic's impacts on nursing and medical education. The 16 commissioned papers and case studies [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] will be published in the March 2022 supplement to Academic Medicine and are now available in preview online.…”