Dear GME Community,
Happy New Year! This issue of GME News & Notes includes some policy changes, new roles in the GME Office, upcoming GME Lunch & Learn schedule and other valuable events, in addition to various important updates.
This month we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and celebrate the Distinguished Service and Community Service award winners. The GME Office also welcomes Jessica Kruse, our new Information Systems & Web Support Specialist! Jessica brings a wealth of experience in user-centered design, web development, and process optimization. If you are wondering who to contact for your specific question, please see Our Team page.
I’m also including language from Dr. Dellit’s email to the UW Medicine community regarding recent federal executive orders: It is unclear how these orders may be implemented, what policies may emerge, and where potential legal challenges may be made. We are working across the UW to better understand these potential impacts and to support our patients, faculty, staff, trainees and students. We are not changing any of our practices or programs while navigating this period of uncertainty. If, after careful review and analysis, we identify the need to make changes or to clarify our position in order to comply with federal and state law, we will work through our existing policies and protocols to ensure appropriate implementation in our complex system. Please know that the GME Office is tracking these matters closely for applicability to our trainees and programs. If you have questions or concerns, please reach out.
Thanks,
Cindy
Policies and Processes
- The GMEC approved revisions to the following policies at the January 2025 meeting. All are posted on the Policies and Procedures page of the GME website.
- Minor updates to the following policies: Visiting Resident and Fellow Policy, Appointment Policy, Credentialing Policy and Meals Policy
- The 2025-2026 Residency and Fellowship Position Appointment (RFPA) Agreement, which will take effect July 1, 2025, has been released and is now available on the Policies and Procedures, Current Residents and Fellows, and Prospective Residents and Fellows pages of the GME website. An announcement with a summary of changes was sent to programs and current residents and fellows on January 7. Programs currently interviewing candidates for the 2025-2026 academic year must provide candidates with a copy of the updated agreement.
- GME is Hiring!
- Programs that would like to discuss any GME Impacts of the UW Medicine and Valley Medical Center Announcement, please contact Cindy Hamra.
- Annual Scheduling Window Opens for WISHTrack Users on January 13th: Each January, WISH opens annual scheduling for recurrent activities and course series for the following academic year (July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2026). In order to support migration to WISH’s new WISHTrack system, the schedule will be open for EARLY ACCESS online booking starting at NOON, on Monday, January 13th. Programs may continue to submit requests via email using the WISH Scheduling Request Template, starting at NOON, on Monday, January 27th (Regular Access).
- A reminder to all clinicians from our colleagues in Risk Management not to use secure chat for emergent issues and that secure chats are subject to public record requests.
- Training Extension Form on the Appointments & Credentialing page has been updated to the Current Appointment Change Form. The new form will be used to request individual appointment updates for chief designation, overnight call, training extension, and training reduction.
- Meeting and away conferences that take place during VA assignments require pre-approval from the corresponding site director and designated education officer. Please submit these requests to the VA no later than 30 days before leave occurs.
- New Non-ACGME Programs: Is your department planning to launch a new non-ACGME fellowship program? Visit the Non-ACGME Program Resources page for resources including the application for new non-ACGME programs.
- Best Practices for Recruiting and Supporting International Medical Graduates: The GMEC IMG Task Force has developed best practices and resources for programs to reduce barriers to recruitment of IMGs which is now available on the Recruitment Resources page of the GME website under Application and Recruitment: UW > Recruiting and Supporting International Medical Graduates: Best Practices.
Program Information
- Welcome New Program Administrators:
- Sam Rogers: Interventional Radiology-Integrated, Interventional Radiology-Independent, Imaging Physics
- Debra Weinstein, MD, assumed the role of ACGME President and Chief Executive Officer on January 1, 2025. Read the Announcement in the ACGME Newsroom.
- The ACGME has a weekly e-Communication. If you wish to receive it, email ACGMECommunications@acgme.org.
Events of Interest
- GME Lunch & Learns
- Program Administrators and department staff involved in the appointment and onboarding process of new residents and fellows in Workday are encouraged to join us on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, from 8:30am-12pm for the AY26 Onboarding Kickoff Meeting. This virtual event will provide an overview of the onboarding and reappointment processes for the upcoming academic year. No registration is required for this event. Complete information can be found in the 12/2 email from Shinetra Pryor.
- Residents & Fellows – we are thrilled to extend a warm invitation to an upcoming event designed exclusively for you – Navigating Parental Leave for Resident & Fellow Physicians, taking place on Tuesday, February 4th from 6:30-7:30pm via Zoom. We encourage all residents, fellows, and guests to join us for this essential discussion. Don’t wait! – Register today!
- February 28 marks National Thank a Resident Day. The GME Wellness Team will be coordinating celebrations at HMC, UWMC, and SCH. Use this link to celebrate the contributions residents and fellows make to our teams every day. Stay tuned to email for more information about lunchtime events on February 28.
- The March 2025 Educator Development for GME Excellence (EDGE) session registration is now open. This virtual session is Tuesday, March 25, 2025 from 10:30 am and 12:00 pm and will focus on “Supporting Trainee Disability Accommodations” with Hayley Fisher, UW GME.
- Navigating Housing and Financial Wellness: A Panel Discussion Thursday, January 30, 2025, from Noon to 1:00 p.m. Gain insights into housing and financial resources tailored for the UW community with experts from SabbaticalHomes, HomeStreet Bank, and Bridges @ 11th.
- Get to Know the WA EAP: For Employees and Their Families Wednesday, February 12, 2025, from Noon to 1:00 p.m. Explore the wide range of work/life resources offered by WA EAP to support employees and their families, from legal assistance to financial counseling.
- Clinical & non-clinical volunteers are needed for the upcoming Seattle/King County Clinic from April 24 – 27, 2025 at Seattle Center. The Clinic is celebrating its tenth anniversary and provides free dental, vision, medical & social services for 3000+ people in need. Review the assignment descriptions for more information on the requirements and duties of each position, including information for students and residents.
- Other GME Events can be found on our calendar.
Projects and Resources
Please review the GME Annual Program Timeline for important dates for the months of January and February.- 2025 ACGME Surveys Open February 10: The ACGME Resident/Fellow and Faculty Surveys run from February 10 to April 4. This year, early participation is especially important due to union-related discussions closer to the deadline. Verify ADS rosters are accurate, with 70% response rates required (or 100% for smaller programs). Resources are available on the ACGME website and from the January GME Lunch & Learn.
- The UW Medicine Peer to Peer program is seeking nominations from residents and fellows who may be interested in becoming trained peer supporters. Submit your nomination here.
- Please remember that the UW Medicine Bias Reporting Tool is a place to share incidents of bias including racism, sexism, ableism, discrimination of any form or other behaviors that do not reflect the prioritization of inclusion and equity expected in all areas of our community. The GME Concern Reporting tool is also available to members of the GME community to report concerns about the learning environment.
- Medical Quality Improvement Committee (MQIC) is a multidisciplinary committee encompassing all core service lines at UWMC. Its goal is to promote quality improvement and enhance patient safety through oversight and coordination of an ongoing standardized case review process. Please see the Lessons & Highlights from January 2025 for more information of current activities.
- Multiple regulations require health service providers to document that faculty/staff who provide healthcare to patients in a language other than English are competent to do so. UW Medicine meets this requirement by having faculty/staff undergo a verbal language assessment or provide university diploma acquired in a country and institution where coursework was completed in the target language. Faculty/Staff must complete the language assessment process, including a brief LMS module on the role and limitations of bilingual staff, prior to listing and/or utilizing their language skills in communicating with a patient in a language other than English. Those who are assessed may use their language skills to the full extent of their own scope of practice. Because this process does not certify faculty /staff as medical interpreters, they should not act as an interpreter between patients and other care team members. If you are interested in having your language ability assessed, please contact uwmed-bilingualtest@uw.edu. More information is available here (login required).
- UWHR is thrilled to announce a new opportunity to support UW families over the summer—a summer camp on our UW campus brought to you by KinderCare’s Champ Camp Great Outdoors. We will be able to accommodate up to 100 kids for summer 2025, with the hope of doubling this count for 2026. KinderCare is giving UW community members a $75 discount off the $600 weekly fee. The camp runs from June 23 to August 22, 2025. Learn more information on the UW WorkLife summer camp webpage.
- Stress First Aid: Anne Browning and Marie Cockerham share how this simple tool can help you check in on your well-being and that of others.
- The GME Office has created a resource regarding information about legal matters for trainees. This document was created with input from Risk Management and Claims Services and is designed to be used by both trainees and programs. The resource is posted to the GME Website and can be found on the Current Residents and Fellows page under UW Resources.
- Affordable housing available near the Seattle campus; priority for UW employees UW employees receive priority access to vacancies at Bridges@11th in the U District. There are three MFTE units available: studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units.
- Institutional Post Recruitment Survey: Programs received a summary of the Institutional Post Recruitment Survey for the 2023 and 2024 recruitment seasons on October 4. We continue to ask programs to include the survey link in post-recruitment survey communications to interviewed applicants. Please contact Gabrielle Pett with questions.
People
- Kelley Branch, Cardiovascular Disease Program Director, has been selected as the Vice Chair and future Chair of the American College of Cardiology Rick Nishimura, MD, MACC and Patrick T. O’Gara, MD, MACC Emerging Faculty Leadership Academy. Dr. Branch is also co-author of “The risk of death according to left ventricular ejection fraction and right ventricular dilatation in 17 321 adults with heart failure from 40 high-, middle- and low-income countries – A Global Congestive Heart Failure (G-CHF) study” in the European Journal of Heart Failure.
- Anne Browning, Chief Well-Being Officer and associate dean for Well-Being, offers practical tips to keep a chaotic day from getting the best of you in “6 Ways to Save Your Stressful, Busy Day” from Right as Rain.
- John Choe, Internal Medicine Program Director, is co-author of “Initial Analysis of Internal Medicine Intern UME to GME Individualized Learning Plan Content” in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
- Haiming Kerr, acting assistant professor, Lindsey Anderson, acting assistant professor, and Jose Garcia, Geriatric Medicine Research Pathway Program Director, are co-authors of “The LEAP2 Response to Cancer-Related Anorexia-Cachexia Syndrome in Male Mice and Patients” in Endocrinology.
- Fuki Hisama, Medical Genetics and Genomics Program Director, gave a presentation at the Paramount Theatre last week for their Beyond the Curtain Series which features local experts who speak about themes related to the current show.
- Dirk Keene, Neuropathology Associate Program Director, is featured in “Changes in cerebellum linked to more severe Alzheimer’s” from the UW Medicine News Room.
- Radhika Narla, Internal Medicine Associate Program Director, is lead author of “Rationale for osteoporosis screening in men” in Osteoporosis International.
- Stefanie Deeds, clinical associate professor, is lead author and Karin Nelson, Health Services Research & Development Program Director, is senior author of “Electronic Health Record Time Allocation Among Primary Care Clinicians at the Veterans Health Administration Using Virtual Observations” in the Journal of General Internal Medicine. Department of Medicine co-authors are Scott Hagan and Ashok Reddy. Dr. Nelson is also co-author of “National Telehealth Contingency Staffing Program and Primary Care Quality in the VHA” in JAMA Network Open.
- Johnnie Orozco, Hematology & Oncology Associate Program Director, and Brenda Sandmaier, professor (Hematology and Oncology) are co-authors of “Randomized Phase III SIERRA Trial of 131I-Apamistamab Before Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Versus Conventional Care for Relapsed/Refractory AML” in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
- Sarah Prager, Complex Family Planning Program Director, is featured in “Washington pharmacists prescribe abortion pills through new pilot program” from Washington State Standard.
- Bridget Collins, clinical associate professor, is lead author and Ganesh Raghu, Interstitial Lung Disease Program Director, is senior author of “Hypersensitivity pneumonitis: A high index of clinical suspicion is key for early diagnosis and successful treatment” in Respirology. Dr. Raghu is also co-author of “Covered Stent Correction for Sinus Venosus Atrial Septal Defects, an Emerging Alternative to Surgical Repair: Results of an International Registry” in Circulation.
- David Rink, Internal Medicine chief resident and acting instructor, is lead author and Tyler Albert, associate professor (General Internal Medicine) is senior author of “Failing Safely: Autonomy and Identity Formation in Medical Training” in ATS Scholar. Department of Medicine co-author is Gaby Berger.
- Coralynn Sack, Occupational & Environmental Medicine Program Director is lead author of “Long-Term Air Pollution Exposure and Severity of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: Data from the IPF-PRO Registry” in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. Department of Medicine co-authors are Joel Kaufman and Ganesh Raghu.
- Christopher Sanford, Global Health Program Director, is featured in “The health risks of these 4 raw foods aren’t what you’d expect” from Right as Rain.
- Georgia Sleeth, Internal Medicine resident, is co-author of “Protest-related injuries during the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone protest in Seattle, Washington, USA in 2020” in Injury Prevention.
- Zachary Steinberg, Interventional Cardiology Program Director, is co-author of “Covered Stent Correction for Sinus Venosus Atrial Septal Defects, an Emerging Alternative to Surgical Repair: Results of an International Registry” in Circulation.
- Check out the Otolaryngology Head and Neck – Winter 2025 Newsletter for trainee features and faculty highlights.
- The top recommended hospitals in every state by Becker’s Hospital Review.
- 100 great neuro and spine programs | 2024 by Becker’s Hospital Review.