From burnout prevention to emergency preparedness: Fostering safe places to learn and work with new initiative for Canadian medical schools

What does safety mean in a medical learning context? The Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada is launching a new initiative designed to foster a safer learning environment for medical students, residents and fellows—and those who teach them.The initiative builds off the original Culture of Academic Medicine Initiative (CAMI), which was created to counter the perception (often very real) that a toxic environment existed in academic medicine. This new initiative adds the term “Towards Provider Safety” (CAMI-TIPS). It focuses on building physical, psychological and culturally safe places for Canadian medical learners to learn and work.The goal of physical, psychological and culturally safety is called PPC safety:P—physical safety: The goal of physical safety means providing learning and working conditions free of violence with occupational health and safety standards in place. It also means emergency preparedness and risk mitigation so future hazards don’t cause harm.P—psychological safety: The aim of psychological safety is to create a learning and working environment where people feel comfortable and believe their leaders and colleagues will support them, not embarrass or punish them. It includes burnout prevention and support for work-life balance.C—cultural safety: The objective of cultural safety is to accept, respect and recognize people with unique individual identities and experiences. It involves addressing systemic discrimination and creating a setting “where people feel safe to be their authentic selves,” the CAMI website states.CAMI-TIPS uses concepts outlined in the international Okanagan Charter, which promotes healthy learning environments in post-secondary institutions. A group called International Health Promoting Campuses produces resources based on the Okanagan Charter and its goals. Resources come from all over the world, such as a health and wellbeing checklist for university decision-making from the University of Sydney, Australia. With the new CAMI-TIPS initiative, physical, psychological and culturally safety will be built into everything from policies, to spaces, to professional development at Canadian medical schools. While the adoption of these measures will be monitored and evaluated, it will be standardized across different faculties of medicine to ensure participants don’t get “survey fatigue,” according to the CAMI website. AFMC’s role is to help Canada’s 18 faculties of medicine come up with their own framework, programs and policies to advance the goals of CAMI-TIPS. AFMC will provide support to the faculties of medicine through funding meetings, education and professional development.There’s a three-year timeline on the roll-out of the initiative. The Canadian Medical Association, MD Management and Scotiabank funds CAMI-TIPS.“The CAMI-TIPS initiative is about creating sustainable change,” said Dr. Constance LeBlan, president and CEO of AFMC and co-chair of CAMI, in a press release. “By prioritizing PPC Safety, we are fostering a culture where medical learners and professionals can thrive, ultimately leading to better patient care.”The AFMC will launch the new initiative at the International Congress on Academic Medicine, held April 3 to 6 in Halifax, N.S.

From burnout prevention to emergency preparedness: Fostering safe places to learn and work with new initiative for Canadian medical schools

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