Applies to: Trainees in the WSU Family Medicine Residency Program–Pullman
Date: January 30, 2024
1.0 Policy Statement
It is the WSU College of Medicine Family Medicine Residency Program–Pullman policy to promote patient safety and trainee well-being through effective oversight of and compliance to ACGME clinical and educational work hour requirements.
2.0 Definitions
Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)
Accredits Sponsoring Institutions and residency and fellowship programs, confers recognition on additional program formats or components, and dedicates resources to initiatives addressing areas of importance in graduate medical education.
Clinical Education Work Hours (Duty Hours)
All clinical and academic activities related to the program: patient care (inpatient and outpatient); administrative duties relative to patient care; the provision for transfer of patient care; time spent on in-house call; time spent on clinical work done from home; and other scheduled activities, such as conferences. These hours do not include reading, studying, research done from home, and preparation for future cases.
Trainee
Resident or fellow in a WSU sponsored residency program or fellowship.
3.0 Responsibilities
Program Director
4.0 Procedures
The program will track all clinical and education work hours in compliance with the ACGME and GME Institutional policies. Trainees, faculty and program leadership should familiarize themselves with the GME institutional policy on Clinical and Educational Work Hours. It is the responsibility of each Trainee and faculty member to ensure compliance with the program’s policy. The program will use New Innovations to monitor Trainee work hours.
The Program Will
- Educate all faculty members and Trainees:
- To recognize the signs of fatigue and sleep deprivation, in alertness management and fatigue mitigation processes.
- Of processes to ensure coverage and continuity of patient care in the event that a Trainee is unable to perform duties without fear or negative consequences.
- Of options, including transportation, available to Trainees who are too fatigued to safely return home post shift or post call (See GME Safe Transportation Home Policy)
- Provide sleeping/call rooms for Trainees during in-house-call, or for napping or sleep post call prior to driving home.
- Require all Trainees to log work hours using New Innovations.
Residents in the Family Medicine Program Shall
- Regularly, at least once every two weeks, log clinical and educational hours in New Innovations. All hours must be logged correctly, and accurately reflect hours worked using the work types configured in New Innovations.
- Log in New Innovations an explanation if a violation occurs.
- Preemptively review their assignment schedule and notify the Program Administrator of scheduling issues that may cause a known work hour violation.
The Program Administrator will help monitor work hour violations and logging. The Program Director will regularly monitor Trainee compliance with established work hour guidelines and address trends and patterns. Patterns and concerns related to clinical rotation structures should be sent to the Program Evaluation Committee for further review. GMEC reviews each Sponsored Program’s work hour compliance during each GMEC meeting.
Specific requirements for work hours related to clinical experience and education are set by the ACGME in the Common Program Requirements. The requirements include limitations on:
- Maximum clinical and educational work hours per week
- Mandatory time free of clinical work and education
- Maximum clinical work and education period length
- Moonlighting
- In-house night float
- Maximum in-house on-call frequency
- At-home call
- Work from home
5.0 Related Policies
- GME Clinical and Educational Work Hours Policy
- GME Moonlighting Policy
- GME Safe Transportation Home Policy
6.0 Revision History
GMEC Approval: November 17, 2020
Revision/Review Date(s): January 30, 2024
Responsible Office: WSU Family Medicine Residency–Pullman
Policy Contact: Program Director
Supersedes: N/A