To improve UNC resident knowledge and confidence in ultrasound skills using pocket point-of-care ultrasound, through a novel ultrasound curriculum.

We hope to further study the effect of the Meet My Loved One (MMLO) document on health care delivery, communication between patients/families and staff/providers, as well as potential health care provider resiliency.

Narrative medicine is a practice that uses the study of the humanities to hone observation and listening skills. This practice has been used as a method of improving clinical competencies in medical students and medical trainees. In prior studies, reflective writing, which is a component of narrative medicine, has been shown to increase empathy, cultural competency and communication skills. At the same time using the skills taught in narrative medicine gives providers the tools to contextualize and process their own experiences which help mitigate provider burnout. Narrative medicine interventions are becoming successfully established at the medical student level, but much less work has been done at the level of residency training, where such programs could potentially be even more beneficial. This study will evaluate the responses of resident participants in a narrative medicine program with the goal of understanding.

We are proposing studying the impact of X+Y scheduling in a combined medicine-pediatrics residency program. These residents already face challenging schedules as a result of being in a joint program. We want to better understand their experiences, which is why focus groups will be used to explore their thoughts.

Our medicine procedure service teaches ultrasound-assistance for lumbar punctures. We have developed a video-based electronic teaching module, as well as a spine model for ultrasound practice, to be used with this training. We plan to assess how this addition of teaching resources improves knowledge acquisition and retention and confidence in use of ultrasound for this procedure.

We are studying the accuracy and utility of two inexpensive, homemade procedure simulators.