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Sponsoring Institution
By: Alfred Peters-Perez, M.Div, MBA, Ph.D. Alfred@PartnersinMedEd.com
Professional Development in GME: A Strategic Advantage for Sponsoring Institutions
Across the country, Sponsoring Institutions are facing a familiar set of challenges: rising regulatory expectations, coordinator turnover, faculty workload, and the ongoing need to create supportive learning environments for residents and fellows. Yet there is a bright spot emerging in many high-performing GME systems — a renewed emphasis on structured professional development for every GME role.
As institutions move into 2026, professional development is no longer a “nice to have.” It is a strategic lever that directly influences accreditation readiness, workforce stability, and the overall culture of graduate medical education.
Why Professional Development Matters Now
While clinical education is naturally at the center of GME, the performance and stability of programs rely just as heavily on the people behind the scenes — program coordinators, program directors, the DIO, GME Office staff, and the broader administrative infrastructure. Each group brings unique responsibilities, and each faces different pressures. Without deliberate support, gaps in preparation and role expectations can become sources of stress, turnover, or operational inconsistency.
Professional development helps solve these challenges in three ways:
- It stabilizes the workforce.
When individuals understand their role, feel supported in their learning, and see a pathway for growth, they are more likely to stay. This is particularly true for program coordinators, who often enter GME without a standardized onboarding structure. - It strengthens accreditation readiness.
Programs with trained faculty and staff exhibit fewer errors in documentation, stronger processes, and more consistent oversight. Professional development creates alignment across departments, reducing the variability that often leads to citations. - It builds a culture of excellence.
Structured learning communicates an institutional message: “Your work matters, and we are investing in you.” That message transforms engagement, confidence, and the shared sense of mission.
A Systemwide Framework for All GME Roles
In February, we will release an Insight article that outlines a comprehensive Professional Development Framework for Sponsoring Institutions — one that aligns learning across six core GME roles:
- Beginning Program Coordinators
- Advanced Program Coordinators
- GME Office / Institutional Coordinators
- Beginning Program Directors
- Advanced Program Directors
- Designated Institutional Officials
Our February Insight Post will offer tools, structures, and role-specific pathways to help institutions reduce onboarding burden, strengthen consistency, and build a workforce ready for the evolving landscape of GME.
Looking Ahead
As we enter a new year, Sponsoring Institutions have a unique opportunity to reinforce the foundations of their GME enterprise. Investing in professional development strengthens programs from the inside out — improving communication, reducing burnout, enhancing compliance, and ultimately shaping better outcomes for learners and patients.
Next month, we will go deeper into the practical steps institutions can take to build this systemwide approach. For now, the message is simple: when you invest in the people who support GME, everything else becomes stronger.
Program
By: Christine Redovan, MBA, MLIS Christine@PartnersinMedEd.com
New Year, New Challenges: Preparing For 2026
As residency programs step into a new year, many are focused on interviews, milestones, and mid-year evaluations. This year will bring a wave of important updates that Program Directors and Coordinators can’t afford to overlook. These emerging requirements and changes will shape curriculum, compliance, and operational planning throughout 2026.
What should we watch?
- Reformatted ACGME Program Requirements – The ACGME has restructured how requirements are organized and referenced. Even when content stays the same, the format shift means programs must update internal documents, policies, and accreditation preparation workflows. January is the perfect time to begin your policy review and prepare any updates for the start of your new class.
- Specialty-Specific Requirement Updates – Several specialties, including IM-Peds and Ophthalmology, have revised standards approved for 2026, with more specialties undergoing review. In addition to all specialty-specific requirements being updated in September 2025, many RC specific resources were updated as well. Make sure you download, print, and read the latest requirements and resources for your specialty.
- Institutional Requirements Revision – The ACGME is preparing significant updates to requirements for sponsoring institutions, which may change oversight, supervision, policy documentation, and GME office processes. Participate in the ACGME stakeholder surveys and provide your thoughts and ideas for institutional and/or program accreditation. Follow the ACGME closely for any updates and additional opportunities to contribute to shaping the future of GME.
- CMS Funding & Slot Redistribution – You should review your current GME capacity, FTE counts, and funding structure. There are multiple proposed bills/rules for 2026 that can affect reimbursement, including redistributed and new GME slots. Follow the bill/rule progress on the CMS and governmental websites so you can take advantage of any available opportunity when it becomes finalized.
January is the perfect time to refresh, renew, and prepare for any impending changes for your specialty. Instead of reacting to changes, let’s make 2026 a proactive year – one defined by readiness instead of urgency.
GME Office / Administration
By: Cheryl Haynes, BA Cheryl@PartnersInMedEd.com
From Administrator to Leader: How Professional Development Shapes Success
Looking back at my 25+ years in Graduate Medical Education (GME) administration, I see that the key to my successes as Program Coordinator, Institutional Coordinator and Residency Manager was firmly grounded in my professional development and ultimately my well-being. I absolutely loved my job; successfully recruiting medical students into our program and watching them grow into competent, independent physicians was truly a joy for me. The most satisfying thing I witnessed was their growing confidence. It was obvious that their confidence came with knowledge and experience. This taught me that I needed to devote time and energy to improve my knowledge, and yes, my confidence.
No young person grows up dreaming of the day that they get to enter data in the Accreditation Data System. Our role has grown from a secretary/administrative assistant position with multiple duties assigned to a leadership role in our programs, complete with protected time. Just as the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) focuses on continuous improvement, administrators must incorporate that focus into their own professional development to equip themselves with the expertise, confidence, and vision needed to take their seat at the leadership table.
Professional development is personal development. It is crucial that we look inward to identify our strengths and our areas for growth. We know that the only constant in the administration of graduate medical education programs is change; changes in personnel, in hospital systems and resources, and in the accreditation and certification requirements. The best way to evolve and master these changes is through education.
The GME world provides numerous educational resources for administrators. It is up to the individual administrator to take their professional development into their own hands. Learn at ACGME is an excellent online educational resource readily available to administrators and other GME personnel. Though costly, annual educational conferences provided by the ACGME, the Association for Hospital Medical Education (AHME), and the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) are excellent resources to keep up with changes, learn how our colleagues apply requirements in their programs, and network with others navigating the same daily challenges we face.
Each specialty has a professional organization dedicated to the professional development and well-being of its administrators. If you are not a member of your specialty’s organization, you are missing one of the best opportunities available. Another great resource for education and networking is the National Society of Academic Medical Administrators (NSAMA). Working among people who share the same requirements, challenges, and frustrations is paramount to your success.
There are many other entities that provide excellent educational opportunities in the field of graduate medical education, Partners in Medical Education, Inc, being one of them. Education is the heart of what we do.
Take advantage of whatever resources you have available; talk with your Program Director, other administrators within your institution or your region, join professional organizations, utilize all means necessary. Invest in your professional development and well-being. Your efforts will prove to be invaluable.
As we enter a new year, this focus on investing in yourself becomes even more important. In February’s Partners® Insight, we’ll be taking a deeper look at professional development across the GME institution—how structured support, intentional pathways, and a culture of growth can strengthen both individual administrators and the programs they serve.
Finance / Public Policy
By: Tori Hanlon, MS Tori@PartnersinMedEd.com
Building a Sustainable Faculty Compensation Model in Graduate Medical Education
Across the country, graduate medical education programs are feeling the strain of maintaining strong educational environments while navigating financial pressures. Faculty are at the center of this tension. They are expected to deliver high-quality patient care, meet productivity benchmarks, contribute to scholarly activity, and provide meaningful teaching and supervision, yet compensation models often fail to reflect the totality of this work. Faculty burn-out and dissatisfaction often stem from unclear or inequitable compensation structures.
Traditional academic compensation structures often underrepresent the value of teaching. Many institutions rely on RVU-based productivity models that reward clinical throughput but insufficiently acknowledge the time required to supervise residents, develop curricula, provide feedback, or mentor trainees. As institutions consider long-term GME strategy, building a sustainable and transparent faculty compensation model has become one of the most pressing needs.
A sustainable faculty compensation model must align incentives, clarify expectations, and adequately resource the educational mission. Key components include:
- clear expectations of teaching roles, precepting, evaluations, mentorship, and scholarly contributions
- Protected time that is truly protected, measured, and budgeted
- Compensation mechanisms such as educational stipends or educational RVUs
- Adjusted RVU expectations for faculty with substantial teaching responsibilities
- Equity and transparency across departments and training sites
Investing in faculty compensation is not merely an expense, it is an investment that impacts accreditation outcomes, faculty engagement, resident experience, and long-term institutional stability. Health systems that modernize their compensation structures will be better positioned to recruit, retain, and support high-quality faculty while strengthening and stabilizing their overall GME program.
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