Resident Physician University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Background: The neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is a unique rotation for pediatric residents. Pediatric residents are only required to spend two months of their three-year residency training rotating through the NICU, limiting the opportunity to learn NICU-specific material. Because of the unique physiology of critically ill infants, pediatric residents often feel ill-equipped to make suggestions on rounds. Previous work has shown that NICU specific education given before starting the NICU rotation is viewed as helpful by pediatric residents. Other studies have shown that rotation-specific pocket guides for medical trainees have been beneficial for trainee learning and knowledge application. Objective: We propose that a NICU protocol-based pocket guide will function as a resource for pediatric residents to feel more comfortable with decision making on rounds, which will lead to better education and knowledge application during the NICU rotation. Design/Methods: A trifold protocol-based pocket guide, based on current protocols from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center NICU, was created for pediatric residents to use on their NICU rotation. It focused on topics related to common problems and emergencies that a resident will encounter including neonatal resuscitation, ventilation management, initial fluid composition and volume, glucose infusion rate calculations, and evaluation of sepsis, among other topics. Residents spent a week on the NICU rotation without the pocket guide to establish a pre-intervention baseline. Prior to distribution of the pocket guide, residents were sent a 13-item pre-intervention questionnaire, which asked residents questions about comfort level with making decisions on NICU rounds. Following distribution and use of the pocket guide for the remaining three weeks of the rotation, a similar post-intervention survey was sent. Basic statistics will be used to compare comfort level of NICU rounds decision-making before and after the implementation of the pocket guide.
