Education and training at ESAIC – what a revolution!

Prof. Stefan De Hert
Chair of the ESAIC Education and Training Committee

In the period following the COVID-19 pandemic, the ESAIC educational activity moved from a mainly congress-centered delivery towards a 365-approach where educational content is released throughout the year. The new approach consists of different formats aiming at a variety of targets in terms of level of knowledge, professional experience, etc. Thanks to the “Education Tuesday” launch, every Tuesday of the year educational content is released covering scientific topics or non-technical skills. 

Concerning the activities, we would like to share with the ESAIC community the main projects and their outcome. 

I. The launch of the podcasts, which have been downloaded more than 100k times in the last 18 months.

Unlike other forms of media, podcasts allow for long-form discussions that can explore complex topics and provide detailed insights. Podcasts are successful because they are accessible and convenient. They can be listened to anytime, anywhere, making them a flexible medium for consuming educational content.  

II. A new look and strategy for the Academy

The ESAIC Academy is a platform where the content produced by ESAIC can be replayed and reviewed. While the content of the congress can be reviewed after the event (immediately by the delegates, and after 6 months by the members). E-modules and webinar replays are CME-accredited and exclusive for ESAIC members. ESAIC keeps adding value to the membership, and we are convinced that one of the best ways is to create more opportunities to increase knowledge through our educational content. 

III. Empowering National Societies with Simulation programmes

The Simulation Committee has developed a working agreement with SESAM, the Society for Simulation in Europe, to work together towards specific projects such as the National Simulation Development Programme, which started in Romania in collaboration with SRATI (Romanian Society of Anaesthesia and Intensive Care) and the national simulation networks.  

The committee will work with SRATI and SESAM to create a Teach the Teacher course to support the development of High Fidelity Simulation faculty professionals, who will become leaders in their field. The intention is that the faculty group will go on to run subsequent courses and develop their skills by teaching others.  

SRATI has also asked for support in developing a national curriculum for resident simulation training. ESAIC and SESAM will work together to develop such a working curriculum. In time, this can be shared with other countries.  

The committee will work with NASC to reach out to and support NASC member countries who wish to develop their simulation education programmes. It will also reach out to the EBA to see how Simulation can be more actively integrated into the anaesthesia curriculum.  

The committee has also launched the first Exchange Programme in Simulation, which will be active as of 2024. 

IV. Paving the way for future activities

All the Education and Training Sub-committees have been very active in the last 3 years, and they are all in the process of relaunching their activities after the obligatory interruption caused by the pandemic. 

The Trainee Exchange Programme Committee became the Exchange Programme Committee, broadening its mission and opening exchange opportunities for trainees and early-career anaesthesiologists. The offer has been enlarged and offers new opportunities thanks to the collaboration with EACTAIC and the launching of the exchange in Simulation. 

The Teach The Teacher Committee became the Train The Trainer Committee, focusing on education competencies and training aspects. A new, reshaped blended model for the Masterclass will be launched soon. 

The CEEA committee has thoroughly reviewed the educational programme, which has been reviewed and updated to match the most recent EBA education and training directives, as highlighted in the European Training Requirement (ETR) released in 2022. 

Meanwhile, many of the 49 centres have restarted the course organization face-to-face, creating new momentum for this long-lasting ESAIC initiative. 

V. What’s new?

In 2023, the e-learning Committee launched the TryMe Quiz, an online self-assessment on a specific topic, a preparatory tool to check your knowledge and play with Q&A prepared by our experts.  

On top of this, a specific e-module accredited with 0.5 CME credits was launched in July 2023 called Guidelines O’Clock. With these short yet interesting e-modules, members can have a deep dive into the latest guidelines released by ESAIC, with the contribution of an expert and an author of the guidelines, who will focus on the main outcome and key learning points.  

In September 2023, ESAIC launched the Focus Track on Brain Health, which is a learning pathway where online and onsite activities are used to deliver content on Brain Health, targeting physicians with basic, expert and advanced knowledge.  

The initiative, coordinated by Prof. Dr Vincent Bonhomme, is the outcome of the common effort of the Education and Training, Scientific and Trainee Committees. 

Moreover, to give more opportunities to learn to our young members, Trainees who attend the 4 webinars in October, will have the opportunity to take part in the Focus Meeting (Nov. 25th) for free.  

The initiative will end in Munich, at Euroanaesthesia, with the Safe Brain Initiative Bootcamp, where 25 seats will be reserved for the participants of the Focus Meeting at no cost. 

With the end of 2023, my mandate as Chair of the Education and Training Committee will come to an end, and I am pleased to announce the appointment of Prof. Joana Berger Estilita (Switzerland), whose appointment marks an exciting new chapter for the Committee and ESAIC.

I am proud of the work and outcomes of the past 3 years. All the achievements were possible thanks to the time, support and work of all the Chairs and Members of the Committee and Sub-Committees and the dedicated professionals at the ESAIC headquarters.