International standards for programmes of training in intensive care medicine in Europe

Purpose: To developinternationally harmonised standards for programmes of training in intensive care medicine (ICM). Methods: Standards were developedby using consensus techniques. A nine-member nominal group of European intensive care experts developed a preliminary set of standards. These were revised and refined through a modified Delphi process involving 28 European nationalcoordinators representing national training organisations using a combination of moderated discussion meetings, email, and a Web-based tool for determining the level ofagreement with each proposed standard, and whether the standard could be achieved in the respondent’s country. Results: The nominal group developed an initial set of 52possible standards which underwent four iterations to achieve maximal consensus. All national coordinatorsapproved a final set of 29 standards in four domains: training centres, training programmes, selection oftrainees, and trainers’ profiles. Only three standards were consideredimmediately achievable by all countries, demonstrating a willingness to aspire to quality rather than merelysetting a minimum level. Nine proposed standards which did not achieve full consensus were identified as potential candidates for future review. Conclusions: This preliminaryset of clearly defined and agreed standards provides a transparent framework for assuring the quality of training programmes, and afoundation for international harmonisation and quality improvement of training in ICM.