An Evaluation of Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship Websites

Outcomes 1. Reviewing the currently existing Hospice and Palliative Care Fellowship websites, participants will be able to see what components are necessary to create an excellent website which will encourage applicants to apply to their program.2. Utilizing a comprehensive review, the current Hospice and Palliative Fellowship Program Websites will be evaluated, allowing participants insight into common weaknesses in information presentation on these websites. Key Message Many Hospice and Palliative Care Fellowship websites do not provide enough information for potential fellows to make informed decisions on whether or not to apply to these programs. Updating these websites will provide potential applicants with the necessary information to pursue this path. This will hopefully lead to an increase the number of providers for these underserved populations. Introduction/Context Access to adequate fellowship information is imperative for resident physicians or attending physicians applying to hospice and palliative care fellowship [1]. Without adequate information, candidates are less likely to apply to programs, deterring potential fellows from pursuing potential fellowship education opportunities [2]. Objective To examine electronically accessible information to those interested in pursuing a hospice and palliative care medicine fellowship (HPF) in their medical training journey. Methods Using the Electronic Residency Application Services (ERAS) [3], a list of websites from institutions offering Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited HPF programs, which participate in the Match was created. Every website was evaluated for application information such as application deadlines, program director/coordinator contact information, and a list of application requirements. Results A total of 190 HPF websites were initially included. 16 were excluded due to not participating in the Match or being unregistered. Websites without valid links on ERAS or following Google searches were subsequently excluded, removing another 6 programs. 1 final website was removed due to appearing to be a duplicate of another. Data from the 167 remaining websites was then recorded and analyzed. Overall, the websites lacked crucial information for potential hospice and palliative medicine fellows. Conclusion Many of the websites do not provide enough information for potential fellows to apply to these programs. Updating these websites will provide potential applicants with the necessary information to pursue this path. This will increase the number of providers for these underserved populations. Keywords Quality Improvement; Workforce / Career Development