The Nightmares Course: A Longitudinal, Multidisciplinary, Simulation-Based Curriculum to Train and Assess Resident Competence in Resuscitation.

Background: Postgraduate medical education programs would benefit from a robust process for training and assessment of competence in resuscitation early in residency.

Objective: To describe and evaluate the Nightmares Course, a novel, competency-based, transitional curriculum and assessment program in resuscitation medicine at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

Methods: First-year residents participated in the longitudinal Nightmares Course at Queen's University during the 2015-2016 academic year. An expert working group developed the entrustable professional activity and curricular design for the course. Formative feedback was provided following each simulation-based session, and we employed a summative objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) utilizing a modified Queen's Simulation Assessment Tool. A generalizability study and resident surveys were performed to evaluate the course and assessment process.

Results: A total of 40 residents participated in the course, and 23 (58%) participated in the OSCE. Eight of 23 (35%) did not meet the predetermined competency threshold and required remediation. The OSCE demonstrated an acceptable phi coefficient of 0.73. The approximate costs were $240 per Nightmares session, $10,560 for the entire 44-session curriculum, and $3,900 for the summative OSCE.

Conclusions: The Nightmares Course demonstrated feasibility and acceptability, and is applicable to a broad array of postgraduate medical education programs. The entrustment-based assessment detected several residents not meeting a minimum competency threshold, and directed them to additional training.