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he leadership structure within many academic departments often includes faculty members in dedicated educational leadership positions who are responsible for providing oversight to a diverse population of specialtyspecific learners and programs. These individuals provide leadership for medical education programs that span the continuum from undergraduate to graduate and continuing medical education. The term "Vice Chair of Education" (VCE) first appeared in the medical literature in 2010 to describe this leadership function. 1 In the past decade, studies have described this role in medicine, surgery, radiology, and psychiatry. 1-4 These studies demonstrate that although the role is increasingly common, particularly in larger departments, only 10%-34% of VCEs have clearly defined roles and responsibilities. 1-3 Currently there is little known about pediatric VCEs. The purpose of this study is to determine roles, responsibilities, funding mechanisms, and impact of a VCE in US pediatric academic departments.

A total of 113 students participated. The top three EPA-based educational priorities were 'recognising a patient requiring urgent/emergent care' (EPA10), 'performing procedures of a physician' (EPA12) and 'collaborating as an interprofessional' (EPA9). Over 80 per cent of students rated 'managing time efficiently' and 'communicating around care transitions' as very important pre-internship skills. Of the institutional objectives, 87 per cent rated 'recognising critically ill patients' and 'knowing when to ask for help' as the most important pre-internship skills. The voice of senior medical students is lacking CONCLUSIONS: Although the emphasis on knowing when to ask for help and communication around care transitions differed somewhat across stakeholders, educational priorities were shared by students, residents, educators and institutional objectives. These preliminary data support national assessments of perceptions and achievements of senior medical students to guide residency readiness in the EPA era.

Rising rates of opioid use disorder, overdoses, and opioid-related criminal offenses have prompted U.S. law enforcement agencies to adopt alternatives to arrest and formal criminal processing. Police departments frequently implement treatment referral programs and claim an affiliation with the Police Assisted Addiction and Recovery Initiative (PAARI). Although expanding to hundreds of agencies, PAARI efforts may not be equally distributed across communities, raising concerns about access to non-arrest diversion and increasing disparities in the criminal processing of drug-related offenses. This study compares the characteristics and geographic placement of law enforcement agencies with and without PAARI programs in 29 states. Law enforcement agencies situated in communities with lower rates of poverty and smaller Black populations have lower odds of having a PAARI program. Agencies based in counties with more overdose deaths and greater unmet treatment needs have increased odds of deflection programing. This placement of PAARI programs reflects broader inequalities in criminal justice and health. More advantaged, predominantly white communities benefit from diversionary programs while fewer alternatives to formal criminal processing exist for lower-income areas and communities of color. Additional research should explore these growing disparities in the deployment of law enforcement-based treatment referral programs and their consequences on drug law enforcement.

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