To the ACGME Residency Review Committees,

We write to request that the timeline for program accreditation reviews be moved up such that accreditation decisions will be available to residents and prospective residents earlier in the academic year.  

As we understand it, the ACGME Review Committees meet twice a year, with the second meeting usually occurring around or after residency match day.  A decision to place a program on probation or to shut it down does not occur until after this second meeting.  This schedule does not leave sufficient time for displaced residents to find new positions. It is also unfortunate for newly matched residents who presumably would have ranked prospective programs differently had this information been available earlier.

Given these concerns, we are requesting:

1.     That the timeline for program accreditation reviews be moved up, such that the status of a program can be publicly available by March 1st.  This would allow sufficient time for prospective residents participating in the regular match to adjust their rank lists based on accreditation review results, as well as sufficient time for displaced residents to make plans for the following year.

2.     That the ACGME provide more transparent communication regarding programs’ status.  We request that residents be notified via email once a year on the status of their program review and provided with instructions on how to access any program’s accreditation status online.  

We appreciate your time and consideration of our request.  Please see the attached petition with signatures of support.