Celebrating Coordinators: 10 Years of the Annual Coordinator Forum at the Annual Educational Conference
In 2008, under the leadership of then-new CEO Dr. Thomas Nasca, the ACGME’s Department of Education (now the Department of Education and Organizational Development) was formed. Dr. Timothy Brigham was named its Senior Vice President, and among other goals and responsibilities, he took the reins for the organization’s largest educational effort: the ACGME Annual Educational Conference. Dr. Brigham formed the Division of Educational Activities in August 2008, and from there, planning efforts for the 2009 and subsequent conferences took a new direction. The agenda for the 2009 conference changed significantly from its predecessor events. In addition to the “core” sessions that were repeated every year, session submissions were solicited from the graduate medical education community at large. The response was overwhelmingly positive and resulted in an in-depth representation of topics and issues relevant to the community broadly. It was also during this time that Debra Dooley, former Director, Educational Activities, with support of Drs. Brigham and Nasca, started to develop the idea for the now annual Coordinator Forum.
The first Coordinator Forum was held as a pre-conference to the Annual Educational Conference in 2011. It hosted fewer than 400 attendees, but from there it only continued to grow. In 2019, 1,200 coordinators representing programs in all specialties and subspecialties and institutions attended the 9th event, and the 2020 forum represents a major milestone. Themed, “Coordinator Forum: 10 Years of Celebrating Community,” the 10th annual Coordinator Forum will host one-third of the conference’s attendees!
The Coordinator Forum typically hosts three plenary speakers. In the past, it featured a variety of talks led by individuals from a range of positions in GME. In 2020, however, the planning committee wanted to focus the plenaries on leaders in the coordinator community who have helped to reshape the position:
CP001 Navigating the A in Program Administration: Ability, Authority, and Accountability
Presented by: Maria DeOliveira, MEd
Administration of education programs requires a collaboration and understanding of roles and responsibilities between physicians and administrative leaders. Given yearly cycles, changing requirements locally and nationally, and day to day responsibilities, task completion often falls to the program coordinators. Increased professional development, interests, and high performance ability of coordinators has resulted in program coordinators often taking the lead in many projects for which program directors are ultimately responsible. It is important to understand the differences among ability, authority, and accountability in order to encourage an environment of collaboration and professional growth.
CP002 Shifting the Focus: Coordinator-Centered Networks for Personal and Professional Growth
Presented by Kaytlyn Darling, MHA, C-TAGME and Tery Noseworthy, C-TAGME
The residency/fellowship coordinator role is key to the success of any program. Coordinators are focused on the career development of their residents and fellows, but they don’t always take the time to focus on their own professional development. Shifting the focus will help participants identify their goals, recognize and improve their individualized developmental networks, and learn practical techniques to improve and expand their network.
CP003 Creating and Maintaining a Sense of Meaning and Joy in your Work
Presented by Rhea Fortune
Connecting to purpose, meaning, and the bigger picture while in the trenches can often create frustration and job dissatisfaction. During this presentation, Rhea Fortune will share how she has learned to maintain joy and purpose through her many years working in medical education. Come and be inspired by realizing just how important you are in influencing the learning environment around you, and learn how to find true meaning in work. This is a time to celebrate the role of the coordinator!
The forum will also include 35 breakout sessions. The content of these improves each year, and 2020 is no exception. There are sessions for brand new coordinators new to their role, but a great number of the breakouts are more focused on topics that contribute to advancing the position of the coordinator. A few session titles include: The Power of Positivity – How Changing Your Communication Approach Can Drive Change; Support the Coordinator! Lessons Learned in a Supportive Culture; Designing Your Life: Taking Charge of Your Career; and Finding Your Leadership Style: Strengths, Weaknesses, and the Roadmap to Improvement. Read about these and all of the forum sessions in the conference brochure!
One feature from 2019 that was very successful returns in 2020. Last year the forum included lunch table discussions on topics solicited from the coordinator community and led by designated discussion leaders. We will do that again this year – stay tuned for more information!
Beyond the forum, the Annual Educational Conference offers many sessions of interest for and designed to appeal to coordinators of all levels. In fact, one of the breakouts, BR35 – Coordinator Well-Being: Time for Action, in the forum is also being offered as a session on Friday, and was the first conference session to sell out.
SES070, the Coordinator Plenary: Making the Extraordinary, Ordinary: How to Manage GME Crisis, offered from 4:15-5:30 p.m. on Friday, is another popular session for coordinators. Approximately 500 attendees usually register for this session.
While the Coordinator Forum and some sessions are specifically focused on coordinators, the majority of sessions, workshops, and events during the conference are applicable across the board to coordinators, program directors, and DIOs, and all others in the GME community because it is a community. Everyone is welcome at everything.
From seasoned coordinators who have “seen it all,” and have paved the way, sometimes painstakingly, for others, to newer coordinators hungry for guidance and professional development the Annual Coordinator Forum – and the conference – are for you.
As we look forward to the 2020 Annual Educational Conference, celebrating 10 years of the Coordinator Forum affords a unique opportunity to recognize the growth of the coordinator role in graduate medical education. Cheers to 10 years – and more!
Have you registered for this year’s conference? If not, make sure you do so by January 3, 2020 to take advantage of Early Bird discounts! Online registration closes January 31, after which on-site registration is available at the conference. Learn more and register here.
As always, continue to follow this blog, and follow us and the conference hashtag, #ACGME2020, on social media (Twitter and LinkedIn) for more updates as we get closer to the conference! We’re looking forward to seeing you in San Diego!