MacEmerg Podcast: A Novel Initiative to Connect a Distributed Community of Practice

Abstract

Background: Regional knowledge dissemination and information sharing is a challenge among physically divided groups of physicians. Many staff and resident physicians do not have easy access to share clinical and medical education and research information with each other in an academic setting. Our divisions of emergency medicine could benefit from a novel approach aimed at improving overall connection and collaborative engagement.Innovation: By harnessing the sociomateriality properties of podcasting, we could achieve the dual goals of better connecting our faculty as well as educating the audience on aspects of clinical practice and education that are especially relevant to our region. We sought to primarily draw on local expertise for content. We developed a standardized structure for our monthly releases, with each episode composed of a main faculty segment, a resident-focused segment, and a medical education segment. Accessibility to the podcast was maximized through its publication across multiple platforms and detailed individual show notes were made available.Outcomes: We applied logic model methodology with the intended goal of having much of our content consumed by local faculty and trainees. Using Web-based analytic data, we were able to ascertain the proportion and number of listens that occurred from within our local university-affiliated and/or catchment region. Episodes averaged 227.7 AE 67.2 listens with an overall 44.1% of those originating from within our defined region.Reflection: Given the number of regional listeners we are consistently reaching, we have been effective in serving to connect a widely distributed group of academic physicians. As we continue to grow the podcast, we plan on collecting quantitative data to better ascertain its effect on our stated goals.

From Innovation to Intrapreneurship: Fostering academic success via the GridlockED project and innovation fund

“…We hope that some of these projects yield further monetizable products that can replenish and and completed their first study. 13 These outcomes reflect high-order outcomes for our program, since there has been a distal change by the grant recipients in that they have taken up education scholarship that has not been previously attempted before due to the grant competition. There are also signs that the grant may be precipitating further outcomes since it sparked an interest in trainees working with faculty members in further medical education research and scholarship work beyond the initial grant.…”

“…We hope that some of these projects yield further monetizable products that can replenish and further grow the fund, allowing us to award bigger awards in future years. Thus far, the first two grants have supported the program evaluation of an institutional podcast (MacEmerg Podcast 13 ) and the evaluation of the Do‐It‐Yourself Mentorship Playbook. Each of these project teams has launched their data collection phase and is currently working on their projects.…”

“…Each of these project teams has launched their data collection phase and is currently working on their projects. One team has presented their data locally at the 2021 McMaster Program for Faculty Development Day (which is our local conference with faculty development workshops) and completed their first study 13 . These outcomes reflect high‐order outcomes for our program, since there has been a distal change by the grant recipients in that they have taken up education scholarship that has not been previously attempted before due to the grant competition.…”

The Learning Loop: Conceptualizing Just‐in‐Time Faculty Development

“…It is incumbent upon faculty developers to think of ways that will engage busy, frontline clinician educators and academics in formats that may best fit into their lives. [54][55][56] Adopting a design-thinking 55 or design-based research 57,58 approach that positions the user (i.e., the faculty member) at its core may be best suited for this purpose. By using these user-centered design methodologies, faculty developers will be able to create new strategies for building accessible and useful resources that support faculty member growth throughout their careers.…”