title: A strategic approach to quality improvement and patient safety education and resident integration in a general surgery residency.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To outline a structured approach for general surgery resident integration into institutional quality improvement and patient safety education and development.
  
  
  METHODS
  A strategic plan to address Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Clinical Learning Environment Review assessments for resident integration into Quality Improvement and Patient Safety initiatives is described.
  
  
  METHODS
  Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation is an independent academic medical center graduating three categorical residents per year within an integrated multi-specialty health system serving 19 counties over 3 states.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The quality improvement and patient safety education program includes a formal lecture series, online didactic sessions, mandatory quality improvement or patient safety projects, institutional committee membership, an opportunity to serve as a designated American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Project and Quality in Training representative, mandatory morbidity and mortality conference attendance and clinical electives in rural surgery and international settings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Structured education regarding and participation in quality improvement and patient safety programs are able to be accomplished during general surgery residency. The long-term outcomes and benefits of these strategies are unknown at this time and will be difficult to measure with objective data.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Education, Gundersen Medical Foundation, La Crosse, Wisconsin.
authors.forename: Colette T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: O'Heron
authors.affiliation: Department of General & Vascular Surgery, Gundersen Health System, La Crosse, Wisconsin. Electronic address: BTJarman@gundersenhealth.org.
authors.forename: Benjamin T
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Jarman
mesh_terms: D003479:Curriculum; D013502:General Surgery / Q000193:education*; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000592:standards*; D009862:Online Systems; D061214:Patient Safety; D058996:Quality Improvement; D014481:United States
keywords: Interpersonal and Communication Skills; Practice-Based Learning and Improvement; Professionalism; Systems-Based Practice; clinical learning environment review; general surgery residency; patient safety; quality curriculum; quality improvement