Four years since the rollout of the competency-based pediatrics curriculum, the pediatrics education taskforce (ETF) is rolling out a host of updates and enhancements to the curriculum and related material. Listening to feedback from recent pediatrics course chairpersons and faculty, the ETF identified three areas of action: course content definition and naming, documentation for practical exercises, and small group discussion cases.
Running the practical exercises as intended without having standardized teaching videos or extensive documentation turned out to be a challenge in a number of courses. In a collaborative effort by the pediatrics expert group and the ETF, new videos for all practical exercises in the standard course have now been released and published in the AO video hub.
Additionally, a booklet describing each practical exercise in detail with bone models, instruments, and advice for faculty has been added to the faculty support package.
In parallel, the ETF thoroughly reviewed the core and optional content and gathered feedback from regional program contributors as well as course chairpersons. Keeping the defined competencies and patient problems in mind, the core and optional content has been updated to allow for more flexibility. The AO Trauma Education Commission approved the proposed changes and with that, the name of the standard course changed to AO Trauma Course—Managing Pediatric Fractures.
Next in focus is the development of templates for online and blended event types as well as the review and improvement of all cases for small group discussions. Small group discussions constitute a key part of teaching in the highly interactive pediatric events, as the focused small group discussions in particular cover essential topics that would previously have been addressed in lecture format. All listed topics must be covered to ensure that participants are exposed to the required content and knowledge.
For further details or answers to any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the education taskforce at templates@aotrauma.org.