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One-Day Career Development Retreat for First-Year Medicine Subspecialty Fellows

at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine

SUMMARY
Target Audience
First-year medicine fellows in medical subspecialties, including geriatrics

Purpose
To address professional needs and training requirements for academic career promotion that are not specialty-specific

Program
Mandatory one-day, off-campus annual retreat for target audience

History
The program began in 2002 and has been held annually for all subspecialty fellows in medicine

Operating Costs
Time of Department of Medicine Chair and Director of Graduate Medical Education, 6-8 senior subspecialty faculty, and administrative support staff; meeting space; handouts; meals

Outcomes
As of 2002, 90 fellows have participated in the retreat and rated the experience good to excellent on evaluations

Available Materials
Article on retreat

For More Information
Bree Johnston, MD, MPH
University of California at San Francisco
(415) 221-4810, x3983
bree.johnston@ucsf.edu

Program Overview

A mandatory day-long retreat is held off-campus for all first-year fellows in the medical subspecialties, including geriatrics. The retreat fills an important void by addressing professional needs and training requirements common to all first-year subspecialty fellows. It also helps promote collegiality and cross-divisional collaboration. This serves to raise awareness about geriatrics among all medicine subspecialty fellows.

This annual retreat is intended to create a forum that bridges specialties and familiarizes fellows in the Department of Medicine with topics necessary for recruitment into academic careers that are not specialty-specific. These include:

  • understanding the academic pathways and criteria for promotion
  • obtaining research funding and salary support
  • providing effective subspecialty consultations
  • working collaboratively across divisions

Program Operations

The retreat begins with an icebreaker activity. A variety of educational methods, including large- and small-group discussions and lectures, are used to address the core topics. The Chair of the Department of Medicine leads a discussion about the structure, funding, and promotion process of academic medicine departments. Breakout groups led by senior faculty from a variety of disciplines focus on strategies for funding and how to become successful clinician-educators, basic science researchers, and clinical researchers.

Staffing Requirements

The following personnel are needed:

  • Chair of the Department of Medicine (one hour)
  • Director of Graduate Medical Education in the Department of Medicine (for retreat logistics planning)
  • Six to eight senior faculty (one hour each)
  • Minimal administrative support staff time

Program Costs and Funding Sources

Faculty and administrative time, meeting space, handouts, and food, totaling approximately $500. Most costs are indirect. Funded by the Department of Medicine.

Process and Outcomes Data

As of 2002, 90 fellows have participated in the retreat and have rated the retreat with good to excellent scores on evaluations. The retreat continues to be refined based on the feedback received each year.

Implementation Lessons

  • Arrangements must be made with program directors well in advance because it is difficult to free fellows from clinical work.
  • It helps to begin the retreat in the middle of the day so that fellows can complete necessary work before going off campus.

Available Materials

Publication

  • A Retreat for First-Year Medicine Fellows.
    Johnston, B, Fenton, C, Jain, S
    Academic Medicine, 2002

For More Information

Bree Johnston, MD, MPH
University of California at San Francisco
4150 Clement Street
San Francisco, CA 94121
(415) 221-4810, x3983
bree.johnston@ucsf.edu

Download the program as a PDF file