Development, implementation and first insights of a time- and location-independent longitudinal postgraduate curriculum in emergency medicine

Introduction, background and context: There have been few reports on the implementation of a structured curriculum for emergency medicine, as emergency medicine is not yet an established medical specialty for training in many European countries, including Switzerland and Germany. Because of the non-plannable workload in the emergency setting, common training approaches are often difficult to implement. Need-assessments of emergency medicine trainees commonly identify a need for interactive, time-independent ways of learning that integrate modern forms of knowledge transfer. Methods: In the present study, we assess the local needs of emergency medicine specialists and trainees for a curriculum in emergency medicine and elaborate possible solutions for the implementation of this curriculum, taking into account the special needs in a highly dynamic, unplannable environment, such as an interdisciplinary emergency department. Results: We describe the development of the emergency medicine curriculum on the basis of the six steps proposed by Kern for curriculum development in medical education, as well as the implementation, lessons learned and interval evaluation. Conclusions: The combination of multiple teaching formats, ranging from time- and location-independent solutions such as podcasted lectures to simulation-based training sessions, as well as small-group workshops and skill training sessions, might be a valuable approach to implementing a state-of-the-art curriculum in a busy emergency department.