With overdose as the leading cause of death for Americans under 50, it is imperative that the nation—including the entire medical community—take responsibility for its role in creating this epidemic and identify and enact strategies that can address it. This is Dr. Leana Wen’s position. The former Baltimore Health Commissioner and current president of Planned Parenthood spoke about the steps she and the City of Baltimore took to address opioid addiction in the community, and what role she sees physicians playing in solving this problem that is devastating the nation.

Jamie Dow, EdM, is assistant director for resident education and training at the University of Florida. Her poster, Mindfulness in Neurosurgery: Improving Neurosurgeon Wellness in Training and Beyond (with co-authors W. Christopher Fox, MD, Associate Program Director, University of Florida, and Gregory Murad, MD, Program Director, University of Florida), looked at wellness in neurosurgery, which Dow says “has traditionally been considered an oxymoron.” However, as priorities among neurological surgery residents evolve and the effects of physician burnout are increasingly recognized across specialties, life balance and overall well-being have become areas of emphasis and an opportunity for program improvement.

John V. Pamula, MD, FACP, led a quality improvement project focused on reducing burnout and increasing well-being among its residents. His poster, Multipronged Strategies to Improve Wellbeing and Work-Life Balance of Residents, was presented at the 2019 Annual Educational Conference, Engaging Each Other: Rediscovering Meaning in Medicine.

On July 15, 2019, the ACGME requested that the United States Bankruptcy Court require Hahnemann University Hospital to provide for orderly and expeditious transfer of all residents and fellows to programs of their choosing. (Updated July 16, 2019.)

The medical malpractice insurance coverage for residents and fellows employed at Hahnemann University Hospital (HUH) between January 2018 and September 2019 has been extended from January 10, 2020 to February 10, 2020.

To provide clarity for trainees and programs during this extraordinary time, the ABMS and ACGME offer the following statement of joint principles and will continue to address ongoing developments.

Bruce Metz will lead the ACGME's information technology strategy and activities. He will begin his position in January 2020.

Following steady growth in ACGME-accredited programs over the last decade, the 2018-2019 academic year showed the largest annual increase of programs to 11,685, up 4.2 percent from the previous academic year.