Wilford Hall hosts graduate medical education course

  • Published
  • By Linda Frost
  • 59th Medical Wing Public Affairs
LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFNS) --  A course for medical educators provided by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences was held Sept. 24 to Oct. 2 at Wilford Hall Medical Center here.

The course, designed to train military medical education program directors, was chaired by retired Army Col. (Dr.) Louis Pangaro, who currently serves as chief of the USUHS Medicine Department. It's the first time the course has been held at WHMC.

For the past 10 years, USUHS officials have presented the annual course in the greater Washington area, but this year, in partnership with the San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium, the course was brought to Texas to provide more exposure to SAUSHEC educators.

SAUSHEC, led by Dr. Kenneth Torrington, is the sponsoring organization responsible for all military graduate medical education in San Antonio with two major training sites at Wilford Hall and Brooke Army Medical Centers, and a close partnership with University of Texas Health Sciences Center of San Antonio.

SAUSHEC is typically offered two to three spots in the class of 24 program directors.

"We have frequent turnover in our program director positions, so we would never have been able to give most SAUSHEC educators exposure to this superb training activity," Dr. Torrington said.

Most of the concepts covered in the course are not unique. However, USUHS provides an intense exposure to graduate medical educational concepts and it does so with a military slant.

During the training, attendees participate in exercises with simulated patients and physicians, scenarios for pre-deployment skills, evaluation methods, and one-on-one interaction.

"Course attendees are increasing their expertise as medical educators, which will make them more effective in their individual graduate medical education programs," Dr. Torrington said.

"They will also be able to improve the teaching skills of their faculty colleagues to strengthen the education programs," he said. "Ultimately, their program graduates will provide great medical care for military beneficiaries."

SAUSHEC's already excellent residency and fellowship programs will become even better as the result of this training, Dr. Torrington said.