Journal of Regional Medical Campuses

Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) for Medical Student Leadership Curriculum Across Campuses

Joann Farrell Quinn

Kira K Zwygart

Amy B Smith

University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine/ Lehigh Valley Health Network

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3112-8117

Deborah DeWaay

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4755-6714

Michael Dowdy

https://orcid.org/0009-0005-2829-5239

Robin Schroeder

DOI: https://doi.org/10.24926/jrmc.v8i2.6675

Keywords: Leadership, Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs), Medical Education

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Abstract

Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) represent essential tasks that medical trainees must demonstrate competence in before performing independently. Within the framework of competency-based medical education, EPAs serve as a bridge between broad program objectives and specific, actionable competencies required in clinical practice. By aligning EPAs with session objectives, educators ensure that each learning activity contributes to the progressive development of necessary skills and knowledge.

 

Following the Association of American Medical Colleges' (AAMC) introduction of Core EPAs for Entering Residency, the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine (USFMCOM) developed program-specific and specialty-specific EPAs to better prepare students for residency. Under this construct, USFMCOM’s Scholarly Excellence, Leadership Experiences, Collaborative Training (SELECT) MD program integrated EPAs tailored to its distinctive curricular elements (referred to as domains), which include leadership, values-based patient-centered care (VBPCC), health systems, and scholarly excellence. SELECT’s dual-campus structure, spanning Tampa, FL, and Allentown, PA, presents a unique opportunity to implement and assess EPAs in a longitudinal fashion across four years of training on both campuses; the Tampa campus and regional campus in Allentown.

 

This paper focuses on the leadership domain of the SELECT MD program and its corresponding EPA, which emphasizes the ability of a resident to effectively lead and manage collaborative healthcare teams from the start of residency. Leadership competencies include the development of patient-centered care plans using a multidisciplinary team approach, leveraging emotional intelligence, understanding personality types and conflict preferences, and creating a psychologically safe work environment. Through professional development coaching and experiential learning, students progress from pre-entrustable behaviors—such as limited awareness of emotional intelligence and its impact—to post-entrustable behaviors, where they effectively manage and motivate teams through emotional intelligence and strategic leadership practices.

 

By embedding leadership EPAs within the SELECT curriculum, USFMCOM ensures that graduates are not only clinically competent but also equipped with the essential leadership skills required for effective healthcare delivery. The structured assessment of leadership competencies throughout medical training underscores the importance of developing emotionally intelligent, adaptable, and team-oriented physicians. This approach fosters a transformative educational experience that prepares future residents to confidently navigate and influence complex healthcare environments.