278211
HIV and hepatitis c training in family medicine residency: An opportunity for workforce development
Geniene Wilson, MD,
Mid-Hudson Family Practice Residency Program, Institute for Family Health, Kingston, NY
Background: With shortages of HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) specialists, individuals living with HIV and/or HCV require more management by primary care physicians (PCPs). Little is known about how family medicine training prepares residents for this responsibility. To better understand current training centered on HIV and HCV, this study aimed to obtain a baseline on the status of HIV and HCV training in family medicine residency programs in New York State (NYS). Methods: A short confidential survey was emailed to program directors of family medicine residency programs in NYS in 2011. Results: A dedicated curriculum or rotation was offered in 52.9% of the programs in HIV outpatient care and 23.5% in HCV outpatient care. Eighty-two percent and 100.0% of programs thought it was important to teach residents to be PCPs for patients with HIV and HCV, respectively. Factors limiting HIV and HCV training cited were: lack of faculty expertise and patients preference to be seen by a specialist. Conclusions: Taking into account the proportion of programs with a dedicated curriculum or rotation in HIV and HCV, the importance programs place on teaching residents to be PCPs for persons with HIV or HCV and the factors cited that limit HIV and HCV training, there is an opportunity for education and curriculum development for family medicine residents. This could ensure adequate training of residents to care for persons with HIV and/or HCV which could, in turn, improve care and treatment of patients affected by these diseases.
Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Advocacy for health and health education
Chronic disease management and prevention
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Learning Objectives:
Compare HIV and hepatitis C training of family medicine residents in New York State
Identify curriculum opportunities for HIV and hepatitis C primary care
Keyword(s): Challenges and Opportunities, Training
Presenting author's disclosure statement:Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been engaged in this type of work for over eight years. My academic and professional experience has been in infectious disease epidemiology with a focus on hepatitis C. I served as a co-principal investigator on this project, collaborating on all aspects of the project, and serving as the lead analyst.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines,
and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed
in my presentation.
