Listen up: Using podcasts in GME

By: Julie McCoy March 2nd, 2009

While I was surfing the Web looking for the latest and greatest in GME, I came across the University of California San Francisco’s podcast library and thought it was a cool idea.

Podcasts are audio files uploaded to the Internet, which listeners can download and listen to on their computers or MP3 players, such as iPods.

UCSF’ posts grand round and orientation presentations to the library so residents and fellows can catch them if they were unable to attend the lecture or refer to them for a refresher on the topic, says Bobby Baron, MD, DIO at UCSF.

This is a great, inexpensive, effective way to convey important information to residents who may otherwise miss the lectures due to scheduling and duty hour limits. And, as I wrote about in an issue of Residency Program Alert, programs can also use podcasts as a recruitment tool.

Additionally, it gives institutions a permanent archive of the presentations, Baron says.

However, it’s important to note that Baron says residents who miss orientation have to go through a more formal process than simply just listening to the podcast presentations, including passing a post-test on all of the information presented.

I did a quick search to see if other residency programs are using Podcasts, and they are. Check them out (Note: You may need iTunes or other audio software installed on your computer in order to listen to the files):

University of Arizona College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics Pedcast

University of Tennessee Health Science Center Internal Medicine Residency Program Podcasts

University of Michigan Department of Family Medicine Podcast on why a resident chose the program

Southern Regional Area Health Education Center in North Carolina’s RadioAHEC

Johns Hopkins University Radiology

Does your program or institution use podcasts or video in any creative ways? If so, tell us about it in the comment box below-feel free to include links, too!