The pandemic highlighted the need for alternative, more accessible access to mental health interventions that can be readily administered remotely. The purpose of this pre-post-interventional study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a virtual mind-body medicine training course on stress, anxiety, and depression levels. University employees and members of the Las Vegas community were recruited via self-selection and snowball sampling and subjected to online mind-body practice sessions in December of 2020. Stress, anxiety, depression, and quality of life were assessed pre- and post-intervention using standardized psychometric valid tools. The paired t-test and related samples marginal homogeneity tests were used for continuous and categorical outcomes, respectively. Depression and stress scores were significantly decreased (p < 0.001). Mean scores of professional quality of life improved post-intervention compared to pre-intervention (p = 0.03). A significantly larger proportion of participants reported no depression or stress post-intervention compared with pre-intervention (p < 0.001, p = 0.003, respectively.) This study suggests that virtual mind-body practices had a pronounced impact on stress and depression levels during the pandemic. These findings support virtual, online-guided mind-body medicine training as an effective intervention that can be administered virtually to reduce stress and depression symptoms.

In today’s applicant landscape, the SARS-COV-2 pandemic has drastically altered the traditional model of in-person interviews shifting it to an online format often conducted by web-based applications. Fellowship programs and naturally fellowship program directors face a new challenge of standardizing information to be distributed to prospective fellowship applicants through American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA) common application. Here we describe a set of 11 criteria recommended by other similar studies selected for evaluation of online program training platforms, where only 13.3% of the acute and regional pain fellowship program online platforms met 75% of the criteria with limited presence in areas of research, rotation schedules, list of fellows, alumni, and life in the area. Additional considerations pertaining to the types of procedures performed, evaluation, mentorship, academic involvement, and teaching should be undertaken by the programs.

Background: Persistent disparities in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) remain across US residency programs despite recent accreditation requirements. In this context, DEI disparities refer to inequities in the representation, recruitment, advancement, and educational experiences of individuals from underrepresented and marginalized groups. Numerous specialty-specific studies have evaluated DEI content on residency program websites, but these studies differ in their methodologies, assessed content, and reporting practices. There is currently no comprehensive synthesis of how DEI content is presented across the different existing literature in multiple residency specialties. Therefore, a scoping review is needed to map the existing literature. Objective: This scoping review will map and summarize DEI elements reported in the peer-reviewed literature on residency program websites and related materials, identifying common practices, omissions, and opportunities for improvement. Methods: Following the population, concept, and context (PCC) framework and PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines, peer-reviewed studies published in English between January 2010 and December 2024 will be included. Eligible studies will examine quantitative, qualitative, and cross-sectional surveys; cohort studies; and program evaluations that examine DEI elements in residency programs. This includes statements, photos, departments, and curricula with elements pertaining to race; ethnicity; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual, and other encompassing identities; disability; cultures; underrepresented in medicine populations; and religion. Searches will be conducted in the PubMed, Embase, and Scopus databases. Two reviewers will independently screen, extract, and chart data. Findings will be synthesized descriptively and presented in tables and figures. Results: As of September 2025, database searches yielded 1709 records after deduplication. Screening, data extraction, and synthesis are proceeding according to the timeline outlined in the protocol, with completion anticipated in 2026. Conclusions: This review will provide a comprehensive overview of DEI practices in residency programs across specialties, inform best practices for standardization, and support efforts to build a more equitable physician workforce.

Medical schools are increasingly reducing required contact hours and incorporating self-directed learning strategies, yet the impact of these curricular changes on academic performance remains uncertain. This retrospective cohort study compared performance on NBME-based organ system examinations across three consecutive pre-clerkship cohorts at a U.S. allopathic medical school that experienced different levels of required instructional time. Cohorts included 178 students and differed in total required contact hours from 306 to 412 h. Mean MCAT scores did not differ significantly among cohorts (510.4 ± 5.4, 509.6 ± 6.3, and 510.0 ± 4.9; p = 0.74). Significant differences in the proportion of students scoring above the national reference value were observed in the Pulmonology (p = 0.003), Gastroenterology (p = 0.020), and Endocrinology (p = 0.003) blocks; however, these differences did not demonstrate a consistent relationship with contact hour totals. Across cohorts experiencing different contact-hour requirements and concurrent curricular changes, examination performance did not demonstrate a consistent pattern corresponding to the amount of required instructional time. These findings demonstrate that lower contact-hour requirements were not accompanied by consistently poorer short-term standardized outcomes in these cohorts; however, the independent contribution of contact hours cannot be separated from concurrent curricular changes.