The most important website for any Program Director or Coordinator of an ACGME-accredited program needs to know is http://www.acgme.org, especially the directors and coordinators page at
https://www.acgme.org/program-directors-and-coordinators/welcome/. This is the website of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), the institution responsible for accrediting your residency program. To enter areas with secure information on the website you will need your program’s 10 digit number and a password created by the director or coordinator. ;A helpful guide for the entire ACGME institution and all its policies and procedures can be found under the Program Directors & Coordinators section in the ACMGE Policies and Procedures link. This guide explains all you’ll need to know regarding the functions of the ACMGE.
Be sure to familiarize yourself with the glossary of terms at this website. These explanations of frequently used terms will guide you through the working language of residency program and accreditation requirements: https://www.acgme.org/Portals/0/PDFs/ab_ACGMEglossary.pdf
A very important link you will use is the Accreditation Data System (ADS) which is the on-line reporting system. Each year Program Directors/Coordinators are responsible for verifying/updating critical accreditation program information (including case logs for some specialties) and keeping resident records current. Annually, the ACGME Data Department sends information about deadlines. The link is on the right sidebar of the ACGME homepage and on the Program Directors & Coordinators page. You can reach it directly here: https://apps.acgme.org/connect/login?ReturnUrl=%252fconnect%252f
Many Residency Review Committees also require residents to input information about procedures and operations into the ACGME Case Log System. The Case Log Information Page contains a lot of useful information about case logs and a link to helpful tutorials. Be sure to know if you specialty RRC has this requirement.
This website also includes many other important areas to use. In particular, you will need to know the Common Program Requirements (the program requirements common to all residency programs and those requirements specifically for your specialty) and the requirements for your specialty (Program Requirements). These are located in the Program Directors & Coordinators section and are listed under the links: Common Program Requirements and Residency Review Committees (select your specialty and you will see the program requirements listing currently in effect).
The Program Directors virtual handbook will give great assistance in the development and improvement of your residency program and the tools to help implement changes based on the current standards and to help with your preparation for your site visit and review.
ACGME Program Director Guide to the Common Program Requirements
On the website there is a Program Director Guide to the Common Program Requirements (http://www.acgme.org/What-We-Do/Accreditation/Common-Program-Requirements) that includes explanations of the intent of most common requirements (with a specific focus on those related to competency-based requirements), suggestions for implementing requirements, and bulleted guidelines for the types of expected documentation. Currently, the explanations and expected documentation in the Guide relate only to the current program requirements. URL Reference: http://www.acgme.org/What-We-Do/Accreditation/Common-Program-Requirements
The Program Director Guide to the Common Program Requirements is a wonderful reference for anyone to read and is organized in a manner that follows the numbering of the current program requirements with explanations and documentation information separately accessible through hyperlinks via the table of contents.
