P3.111: UNPACK: Understanding Needs in Post-rotation Activities and Coaching Kit - A Debriefing Curriculum

Background: Formalized debriefing after travel is a critical component of Global Health rotations, but there is a lack of structured, evidence-based processes. From a medical education perspective, there is increasing attention to the need for a standardized, best-practice-based process for trainee debriefing after global health rotations that can address emotional and cognitive components of their experience. We envisioned a toolkit of resources to support all aspects of the post-global health rotation period, including institutional processes and faculty training for facilitating debriefing conversations with trainees. Multi-institutional collaborative efforts are an effective method to design and implement curricula that address gaps in global health education (https://sugarprep.org/).

Methods: We followed Kern’s 6-step process for curriculum development to address the need for holistic debriefing processes after global health away rotations. We polled pediatric global health educators from a seven institution Global Health consortium on their current debriefing practices including faculty preparation, learner needs, and institutional priorities for post-rotation debriefing. We reviewed existing literature on the utility of narrative reflective writing in professional development and debriefing following simulation-based learning to develop five modules to support implementation of rigorous post-rotation debriefing in global health education programs. Members of the multi-institutional consortium met regularly to articulate goals and objectives, develop educational materials, and make iterative changes based on feedback solicited from peer educators.

Results: The UNPACK (Understanding Needs in Post-rotation Activities and Coaching Kit) modules consist of peer-reviewed activities to address five global health rotation debrief processes: institution/organizational structure, learner debrief preparation, conducting the debriefing session (addressing emotional and cognitive components), facilitating mental health support, and bringing experiences back to partner institutions. Each module stands independently and takes approximately 2-3 hours to work through. Programs may choose just one or two modules to work on a specific aspect of their program they would like to improve, or may choose to do all five as they re-envision a new approach to debriefing. As a complete package, this kit is designed to help training programs create a holistic debriefing process to assist returning learners unpack their experience.

Conclusion: Global away rotations are distinct from other experiences in medical training. These experiences require dedicated and regular review of both institutional operations and faculty preparation for post-rotation debriefing of trainees’ emotional and cognitive learning. This toolkit of five modules leverages the power of a multi-institutional consortium to develop a holistic post-rotation process. At its crux, narrative reflective writing and established debriefing best practices help facilitators prepare for guiding returning learners in unpacking their experiences. Next steps are to implement this standardized process at consortium institutions and evaluate impact on both the facilitator and the learner experience.