Spotlight On...
Jim Colletti, MD FAAEM, an interview with Regions Hospital's Assistant Residency Director
Jim Colletti, MD is a staff physician and Assistant Residency Director in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota. He is Board Certified in both Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics. He was recently awarded the CORD Faculty Teaching Award at the SAEM Annual Conference in San Francisco.
Could you tell us a little about your own education and why you chose emergency medicine?
I chose emergency medicine after my 3rd year EM rotation. It fit my vision of what a physician was supposed to be: patient centered, willing to take care of anyone at anytime, taking care of patients with acute illness in their time of need.
How did you become interested in being a medical educator?
My parents who I deeply admire are both teachers so it was a natural fit. I was inspired by my educators such as Amal Mattu, Dick Kuo, Annie Sadosty, Ken Butler, and Brian Eurele.
In general, what was it about these individuals that inspired you, or how were they able to inspire you to follow in their footsteps?
My parents inspired me because they are true educators you can’t walk away from talking to them without learning something. By watching them prepare lesson plans and teach I learned curriculum design, effective teaching skills, and how to educate a wide array of learners. Amal inspired me because he was an amazing teacher who is a true quadruple threat (excellent clinician, educator, author, and speaker). Dick had the perfect balance of supervision. He was an excellent bedside teacher who was able to balance autonomy and supervision. Annie is an amazing person who is extremely professional, patient centered, well rounded, educationally gifted, and perhaps the most equitable person I have met. Ken spent a lot of face time with the residents. Brian is extremely well organized.
What do like most about your job as a medical educator?
I most enjoy the teaching moment and watching residents as they progress.
How do you define a ‘teaching moment’ and how do you find time to integrate teaching into busy ED shifts?
Teaching moment is what happens when the rubber meets the road so to speak. It is where academic medicine and clinical medicine meet. I personally integrate the teaching moment into the presentation of the patient and tailor the info to the learner and the patient encounter.
What do you find most challenging about educating residents/students?
I think the most challenging is a learner with a negative attitude. A close second is balancing the educational needs of the residents and medical students with the demands of clinical practice.
How do you deal with, or overcome, negative attitudes in students/residents so that you are still able to be an effective educator?
Amal once told me half of life is showing up. This applies to the challenging learner. I just keep showing up and trying. So far it has worked.
As a medical educator, what motivates you?
I am motivated by the sense that I’m contributing to the educational development of residents and medical students. Plus each year I get to mentor 9 new residents and make 9 new friends.
If you could give one piece of advice to students/residents interested in becoming educators, what would it be?
Do it because you love it. It’s a lot of work with highs and lows and you have to truly enjoy it.