The Boston Children’s Hospital Academy: Development and Initial Assessment of a Hospital-Based Teaching Academy

Medical education academies play an important role in the recognition and career advancement of educators. However, hospital-based clinical faculty have unique professional development needs that may not be met by medical-school-based academies.The Boston Children's Hospital Academy was founded in 2008 to serve the needs of its clinician-educators. It was open to junior faculty scholars and to senior faculty scholars and mentors, including interprofessional educators. To maintain membership, individuals must propose and work toward an education project or serve as a project mentor. In 2012, a survey was sent to all members, and annual project reports were reviewed to assess the academy's impact.Sixty-five members completed the survey. The majority agreed that the academy created a community of educators, provided opportunities for networking and scholarship, contributed to their personal identity as an educator, and led to recognition by their chief. Projects addressed curriculum development, faculty development, learner assessment, program assessment, and resource development. They largely focused on graduate medical education and on patient safety and quality. During their tenure in the academy (mean length of membership = 2.4 years), members produced an average of 4.4 education presentations and 1.9 education publications, and 11 members were promoted.A hospital-based academy provides opportunities for interprofessional faculty development. Next steps include increasing interprofessional membership, wider dissemination of members' successes, better integration with the hospital's mission, specifically regarding graduate medical education and patient safety, and additional evaluation of the academy's impact on project completion and members' accomplishments.