TTR EVENTS

Upcoming Grand Rounds:

Wednesday, September 23, 2026 at 2:00 pm ET

Medical Escape Rooms

  • Jaini Sutaria, MD – Associate Professor of Internal Medicine, UT Southwestern Medical Center

  • Hina Mehta, MD – Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, UT Southwestern Medical Center

  • Abraham (Rahm) Heymann – Medical Simulation Specialist, UT Southwestern Medical Center

Preparing graduating medical students for internship requires innovative strategies that build skills in teamwork, communication, task prioritization, and real-time clinical decision-making. This session will begin by introducing and synthesizing key literature on escape rooms in medical education and highlighting the benefits of game-based learning. We will then present our institution's approach to designing and implementing a five-room medical escape room curriculum within a Transition to Residency (TTR) course.
Drawing on a multi-year implementation involving 400+ learners, participants will learn how escape rooms on core topics (sepsis, electrolytes/acid-base, arrhythmias, hypoxia, and pain management) were developed using a practical framework and simulation best practices.
We will share implementation insights, including challenges encountered and practical solutions from iterative refinement. Our simulation technician will also provide their perspective on the logistical planning, setup, and operational considerations required to successfully run these sessions. Attendees will view short video clips of learners engaging in the escape rooms and review sample puzzles to illustrate design principles in action.
Outcome data demonstrating high learner satisfaction (~95%) and improvements in teamwork, communication, and confidence in managing common inpatient scenarios will be presented. Participants will leave with a practical roadmap and adaptable tools to implement escape rooms in their own TTR curricula.

Relevance: Transition to Residency courses emphasize applied clinical skills, teamwork, communication, and real-world problem-solving. Medical escape rooms directly target these competencies through active, collaborative, and experiential learning. This format provides a replicable, outcomes-driven model that aligns with national recommendations for TTR curricula and addresses known gaps in intern preparedness.

Takeaways
1. Escape room is an effective pedagogical approach within a TTR course to package and teach multiple topics and skills simultaneously, helping learners prepare for residency.
2. Educators can consider an escape room format especially when their primary objective is skills practice, teamwork, and immersive application of knowledge in a safe learning environment. 

For Zoom link and calendar invite, email matthew.rustici@cuanschutz.edu

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In case you missed it… Prior TTR Grand Rounds

Building Educational Handovers: A Tale of Three Medical Schools

Siobhan Proksell, MD, IBD Fellowship Program Director, University of Colorado Anschutz

Gauri Agarwal, MD, Associate Dean for Curriculum, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine

Building Educational Handovers: A Tale of Three Medical Schools

Cynthia Leung, MD, PhD, The Ohio State University College of Medicine

Helen Morgan, MD, University of Michigan School of Medicine

Abigail Winkel, MD, MPHE, FACOG, NYU Grossman School of Medicine

The Landscape of Transition to Residency Courses in the United States: Results of a National Survey

Lauren A. Heidemann, MD, MHPE; Kristen E. Fletcher, MD; Diane Levine, MD; Matthew Rustici, MD; Genie Roosevelt, MD, MPH; Kathryn Mutter, MD, MPH

The Transition to Residency: Virtual or Reality? Using Virtual Reality as an Adjunct Pedagogy

Adam Garber, MD, Pete Meliagros, MD, Jay Diener-Brazelle

Virginia Commonwealth University

Planning and Implementation of TTR at a Regional Campus

Homan Wai, MD, FACP and Susan Schenck

University of Virginia, School of Medicine

Specialty Innovations in TTR Curricula

Sarah Wagner, MD, FACOG (ONBOARD - Association of Professors in Gynecology and Obstetrics) and Adam Kabaker, MD, FACS (Chair, ACS/APDS/ASE Resident Prep Curriculum)

Loyola University of Chicago, Stritch School of Medicine

Personalizing the Transition: Harnessing the Potential of App Technology for TTR Courses

Sidra Querishi, MD, FACP and Amy Gonzales, MD, FAAP

University of Texas Medical Branch

Workplace Collaboration: Readiness for Interprofessional Practice

Kathryn Mutter, MD, MPH, Jess Dreicer, MD

University of Virginia

Ready Day One: Lessons Learned from the University of Michigan Residency Prep Courses

Helen Kang Morgan, MD, Lauren Heidemann, MD, MHPE

University of Michigan

Resources, Recruitment and Retention in a Complex TTR Course

Matt Rustici MD, Cason Pierce MD, and Anna Neumeier MD

University of Colorado

A Sense of Impending Doom…The Evolution from In-Person to Avatar-based Tele-simulation at RWJMS

Colleen M. Donovan, MD, FACEP

Rutgers-RWJMS