The purple inpatient team is a novel approach to assisting the senior resident develop skills to manage a team as well as learn/practice educational techniques. This year, this team is changing into an admission-only team to hone triage and admission skills and to improve workflow of the rounding housestaff teams.

Residents are the hospital code team and are kept up-to-date in ACLS training.  The program provides supplemental training (advanced airway management, pharmacology and cardiac rhythm lectures, interdisciplinary code team training) to truly prepare our residents to feel confident running codes.

Second year residents take an ACLS-EP course given by the IMRS faculty.

• Provides recertification for ACLS (IMRS pays for the course and cards)
• Allows exploration of in-depth, but less common ACLS scenarios
• Hypothermia
• Toxins, including poisoning
• Severe asthma management
• Lightning strikes
• Advanced electrolyte abnormalities
• Advanced airway procedures(using pig tracheas for cricothyroidotomies)

IMRS is fortunate to have a faculty dedicated solely to medical education.  They are creative and innovative in their approach to medicine and are interested in each learner.

Annual workshop organized by faculty and fellows, geared specifically to give tools for success for senior residents.

Topics include:

• Teaching skills for senior residents
• Grading, teaching and managing medical students
• Dealing with difficult interns and faculty
• Being an effective senior on night float
• Conflicts at the workplace
• Managerial skills for senior residents

IMRS residents work with Family Medicine, Psychiatry and Transitional year residents on a variety of teams in the hospital. They interact frequently in our shared precepting space in the clinic. In addition, they interact socially with the other residency groups. You can always find someone who shares your interests!

We pride ourselves on responsiveness to resident input. The residents, faculty and admin staff meet monthly to enhance communication but also to problem solve any issues. The residents meet without faculty every other month to discuss any concerns and also to devise improvements. The topics discussed are brought to the Program Director who can institute new policy/change or bring these issues to the joint meeting described above. IMRS also has three extended resident/faculty meetings throughout the year that allow for more in depth discussion and solution generation. 

Examples of resident participation that have resulted in change:

• Development of night float system (replacing Q4 call system)
• Implementation of Wellness Half Days
• Review of transitions of care curriculum
• Assignment of same-day Continuity Clinic to allow for improved patient continuity.
• Institution of house staff admitting-only team

Ample opportunities exist for residents to participate in Program Evaluation Committees and hospital committees where their input is valued and change accomplished

In the hospital (PSHMC), we join forces with pharmacy, radiology and other residents. We actively participate in code team training and Hospitalist grand rounds, to name just a few of our interdisciplinary projects.

The clinic is a rich environment for collaboration. Three residency programs co-habitate there and we experience support from pharmacy, social work, behavioral health, legal support for health-harm needs, exercise, nutrition and diabetes educators, all who provide teaching while they provide care for patients.

The faculty provide mentorship/advice for a cadre of residents of varying years. They share lunch together several times/year, meet to discuss presentations, assist with career plans and serve as a resource.