UW Medicine has been implementing solutions to meet the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education's new resident duty-hour standards, which take effect July 1. The purpose of the standards is to limit and regulate the work hours for residents.

In December of 2002, residency program directors assessed their programs and developed plans to bring each program into compliance with the new standards. Among the concerns expressed about the new duty standards were decreased continuity of patient care, increased faculty workload, and missed training opportunities.

A UW steering committee reviewed the residency program plans. The committee, headed by John Coombs, associate vice president and associate dean for regional affairs and graduate medical education, was composed of the medical directors of UW Medical Center and Harborview Medical Center, representative residents, the director of graduate medical education, residency program directors, the MEDEX Northwest director, and others.

Most programs were already meeting the new standards. Changes were required in 10 departments. The types of changes include the addition of new resident and hospitalist positions, increasing the patient care responsibilities of nurse practitioners and physician assistants, and improving the work flow on the affected clinical units.

UW Medicine is improving other aspects of graduate medical education to foster excellence and efficiency, flexibility to meet future clinical service demands, and integration of general competency requirements into duty hour limitations. Program directors hope the new standards will reduce residents fatigue, improve quality of residents lives, and enhance patient safety.