Colletti, James E.

ABSTRACT Background Academic departments in medicine face increasing pressure to balance clinical productivity with their broader academic missions, including education, scholarship, mentorship, and service. While clinical work is routinely quantified through relative value units (RVUs), non‐clinical academic contributions are inconsistently measured and often undervalued. Academic Value Unit (AVU) systems have emerged as frameworks to quantify these activities, but adoption remains limited due to inconsistent funding models, lack of standardized frameworks, and minimal evidence demonstrating outcomes such as faculty satisfaction, retention, or return on investment (ROI). Methods This concept paper synthesizes current AVU implementation strategies in emergency medicine and proposes an evidence‐informed six‐step framework for AVU design, funding, and sustainability. The framework was informed by a literature review, analysis of institutional dashboards, and multi‐institutional input from the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine (SAEM) community, including feedback from a national didactic session at the 2025 SAEM Annual Meeting. Results The proposed framework outlines practical steps for AVU implementation: defining mission‐aligned domains, identifying measurable academic activities, establishing transparent weighting systems, integrating real‐time tracking dashboards, developing sustainable blended funding models, and engaging leadership and faculty through iterative review. The model incorporates customizable templates, adaptable activity menus, and suggested ROI metrics that departments can tailor to local institutional priorities and resources. Conclusions AVU systems offer a structured approach to recognizing and incentivizing non‐clinical academic contributions in emergency medicine. A transparent, mission‐aligned framework supported by sustainable funding and measurable ROI metrics may enhance faculty engagement, equity, and long‐term departmental sustainability. Future work should focus on establishing validated benchmarks for AVU weighting, integrating AVUs with faculty development and wellness initiatives, and evaluating longitudinal outcomes such as retention, satisfaction, and equity.

Introduction: Horizontal violence (HV) is defined as “persistent exposure to interpersonal aggression and mistreatment from colleagues.” Our objective in this pilot, single-site study was to identify sources of HV toward emergency medicine (EM) residents, using the Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R). Methods: In this investigation we used a descriptive cross-sectional survey design to categorize HV. All voluntary participants were residents in an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education- approved, three-year academic EM residency. Data were collected via electronic survey and occurred six months into an academic year. We collected demographic information and responses to the NAQ-R in 2020. Horizontal violence is subdivided into three categories: work-related; person-related; and physical intimidation. Emergency medicine residents answered questions as they related to their interactions with residents and support staff, which included nursing. Results: A total of 23 of 26 residents responded (89%). Participants were 56% women, 78% white, 11% Hispanic, and 89% heterosexual. Participant clinical year was 39% first-, 39% second-, and 22% third-year residents. Women reported a higher frequency of HV compared to men (1.3 vs 1.1, P =.01). By category, women indicated higher incidence of work-related violence from other residents (P = .05) and staff (P =.02). There was no difference in reported frequency of violence for interns compared to senior residents. Conclusion: Our pilot study demonstrated horizontal violence toward EM residents exists and is more prevalent in women.

AbstractBackgroundIn 2013 the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) introduced “Milestones” designed to nationally standardize the assessment of resident physicians. Previous studies compare resident self‐assessment on milestones to faculty assessment, with varying degrees of agreement, but integration of self‐assessment into the formative feedback process has not yet been directly studied. This study uses a conceptual framework of self‐determination theory, integrated with concepts from adult learning theory, to compare the perception of the feedback quality given in semiannual reviews before and after the incorporation of resident self‐assessment into the feedback process.MethodsThis was an interventional study conducted in a single emergency medicine residency program at a major academic hospital over 1 calendar year. Residents first engaged in a semiannual review without self‐assessment. At subsequent semiannual reviews, residents completed a Milestone‐based self‐assessment that was provided to the faculty member assigned to conduct their semiannual review. Residents and faculty completed surveys rating perception of feedback quality. Two‐sided Wilcoxon signed‐rank tests were used in comparison analysis.ResultsOne resident did not self‐assess prior to the semiannual review and was excluded leaving 25 paired surveys for analysis. Residents found feedback after the self‐assessment more actionable (p = 0.013), insightful (p = 0.010), and better overall (p = 0.025). Similarly, faculty felt the feedback they provided was more actionable (p < 0.001), more insightful (p < 0.001), and better communicated (p < 0.001); led to improved resident understanding of milestones (p < 0.001); and were overall more satisfied (p < 0.001). Free‐text comments explore pre‐ and postintervention perceptions of feedback.ConclusionsIntegration of self‐assessment into semiannual reviews improves perception of feedback given to residents as perceived by both residents and faculty. Although limited by sample size, the results are promising for a simple, evidence‐based intervention to improve feedback during an existing mandated feedback opportunity.

Abstract Background: Awareness of burnout has led residency programs to seek interventions to promote well-being, resiliency, camaraderie and social network development. Limited evidence exists on the efficacy of specific interventions. This study evaluated the efficacy of an emergency medicine residency program’s semi-annual retreat using serial administration of the Maslach burnout index and resident well-being survey.Methods: Surveys were administered to all emergency medicine residents (n=25) in July 2018 and before and after fall 2018 and winter 2019 retreats. Retreats included a meal, team building, and social networking opportunities (bowling, softball, snow tubing, and sledding). Comparisons of responses between baseline, pre-retreat, and post-retreat were evaluated using two-sample t, Wilcoxon rank sum, and Fisher exact tests. Results: Sixteen emergency medicine residents (64%) responded at baseline. Response rates on subsequent surveys ranged from 14 (56%) to 21 (84%). Nineteen percent of residents exhibited burnout at baseline. This peaked at 36% pre-winter retreat. Burnout decreased after each retreat (fall: 29% to 6%, winter: 36% to 13%). Mean Maslach burnout index subscores for emotional exhaustion (13 to 9) and depersonalization (7 to 5) decreased from baseline to post-fall retreat, but neither changed significantly over the entire study period (emotional exhaustion: 13 to 12, depersonalization: 7 to 6). Resident well-being survey pre- and post-retreat responses were similar on all items.Conclusion: Meaningful, but not statistically significant differences were detected on the Maslach burnout index and resident well-being survey in association with a retreat. Mean emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and burnout decreased after retreats. Larger studies would provide further insight into the significance of these trends.

Abstract Background Awareness of burnout has led residency programs to seek interventions to promote well-being, resiliency, camaraderie and social network development. Limited evidence exists on the efficacy of specific interventions. This study evaluated the efficacy of an emergency medicine residency program’s semi-annual retreat using serial administration of the Maslach burnout index and resident well-being survey. Methods Surveys were administered to all emergency medicine residents (n = 25) in July 2018 and before and after fall 2018 and winter 2019 retreats. Retreats included a meal, team building, and social networking opportunities (bowling, softball, snow tubing, and sledding). Comparisons of responses between baseline, pre-retreat, and post-retreat were evaluated using two-sample t, Wilcoxon rank sum, and Fisher exact tests. Results Sixteen emergency medicine residents (64%) responded at baseline. Response rates on subsequent surveys ranged from 14 (56%) to 21 (84%). Nineteen percent of residents exhibited burnout at baseline. This peaked at 36% pre-winter retreat. Burnout decreased after each retreat (fall: 29–6%, winter: 36–13%). Mean Maslach burnout index subscores for emotional exhaustion (13 to 9) and depersonalization (7 to 5) decreased from baseline to post-fall retreat, but neither changed significantly over the entire study period (emotional exhaustion: 13 to 12, depersonalization: 7 to 6). Resident well-being survey pre- and post-retreat responses were similar on all items. Conclusion Meaningful, but not statistically significant differences were detected on the Maslach burnout index and resident well-being survey in association with a retreat. Mean emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and burnout decreased after retreats. Larger studies would provide further insight into the significance of these trends.

Background: Patient satisfaction surveys are vital to measuring a patient’s experience of care. How scores of patients managed by emergency medicine (EM) residents change as residents progress through training is not known. Objectives: To evaluate whether EM residents’ patient satisfaction scores improve as residency training progresses, similar to clinical skill improvement. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study evaluated the correlation of patient satisfaction scores with EM resident year of training from 2015 through 2017. We evaluated for a change in score over time for the 4 “physician questions” and the “overall” score. Results: We evaluated 1684 Press Ganey surveys linked to 40 EM resident physicians during the study period. The mean top box scores for the 4 physician questions (concern for comfort [ P = .72], courtesy [ P = .55], informative about treatment [ P = .46], and listening [ P = .91]) and overall assessment of emergency department care ( P = .51) were not significantly improved over the course of resident. Conclusion: We did not observe a difference in EM residents’ patient experience scores as their level of training progressed. Comprehensive patient experience training for residents might be needed.