University of Iowa Health Care’s Graduate Medical Education (GME) Innovation Funding Grants are a dynamic catalyst for advancing clinical education.
Past awardees have significantly enriched educational programming, transformed health care delivery systems, and sparked greater creativity and scholarship across the institution. Each year, the GME office invites proposals for new clinical education initiatives, welcoming a wide range of innovative ideas that address current challenges in medical training. Special focus areas include transitions from undergraduate to graduate medical education, cultivating feedback cultures, promoting well-being and connectedness, professional identity formation, addressing healthcare disparities, redesigning care models, clinical coaching, interprofessional teamwork, and models supporting graduated responsibility. This competitive process values clarity, feasibility, impact, and collaboration. Applications must outline the initiative, improvement goals, assessment plans, implementation timeline, and budget justification. Funding typically ranges from $4,000 to $6,600, with a maximum of $8,500, and may be used for materials, equipment, or support services—but not for salaries. Program Director endorsement is required, and cross-specialty collaborations involving residents, fellows, and faculty are strongly encouraged. We look forward to seeing where your creativity will take us.
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This year's awardees
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Program Director
Project Lead
Title
John Keech Albert Pai Development and Implementation of a Low-Cost 3D-Printed Cardiac Surgery Simulator for Technical Skills Acquisition Manish Suneja Jennifer Strouse Decreasing Cognitive Load Through Bite-Sized Teaching while Promoting Feedback on Teaching Skills Chad Tracey Brent Yelton* Design and Implementation of a robotic surgical coaching curriculum using video review and telestration Pavlina Kemp Zachary Richards* Iowa Ophthalmology Stereo Surgery Atlas and Curriculum Lama Abdel Wahed Frida Teran-Garza* Reimagining and Enhancing Neurology Residency Didactics Matthew Karam Steven Long Advancing Surgical Proficiency: Development and Validation of a Sacro-Iliac Screw Navigation Curriculum for Orthopedic Resident Training Dawn Dillman Stephanie White Reflective Journaling Leah Zhorne Natalie Ramsy* Gamified Peds Neuro Transition-to-Practice Curriculum Erin Crocker Jess Smoko* Preparing Residents to Respond to Agitated Patients: A Simulation-Based Pilot Project James DeAndrade Brandon Toliver* Minimally Invasive Surgery Skills for Medical Students Kelly Ledbetter Kelly Ledbetter Implementation of Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) in Plastic Surgery Training Through National Pilot Participation John Keech John Keech Real-Time AI-Augmented Debriefing in Simulation-Based Medical Education: Feasibility, Quality, and Educational Impact Manish Suneja Anuradha Gore Resident Wellness Toolkit: A Multimodal Approach to Building Resilience and Reducing Burnout in Training Kathleen Dlouhy Katherine Jensen* Implementation of Renewal and Revision of the Iowa Neurosurgery Wet Laboratory Curriculum * = Resident/Fellow Project Lead
2026-2027 Awardees for GME Innovation Funding
2026-2027 Innovation Funding Summary
14 out of 22 proposals were funded from 12 specialty programs
7 had Project Lead by Resident/Fellow Collaborating with Program Directors
Total Funding of $65,860
Average proposal funded - $4,704
Range $650 - $8,120
2026-2027
Program Director | Project Lead | Title |
| John Keech | Albert Pai | Development and Implementation of a Low-Cost 3D-Printed Cardiac Surgery Simulator for Technical Skills Acquisition |
| Manish Suneja | Jennifer Strouse | Decreasing Cognitive Load Through Bite-Sized Teaching while Promoting Feedback on Teaching Skills |
| Chad Tracey | Brent Yelton* | Design and Implementation of a robotic surgical coaching curriculum using video review and telestration |
| Pavlina Kemp | Zachary Richards* | Iowa Ophthalmology Stereo Surgery Atlas and Curriculum |
| Lama Abdel Wahed | Frida Teran-Garza* | Reimagining and Enhancing Neurology Residency Didactics |
| Matthew Karam | Steven Long | Advancing Surgical Proficiency: Development and Validation of a Sacro-Iliac Screw Navigation Curriculum for Orthopedic Resident Training |
| Dawn Dillman | Stephanie White | Reflective Journaling |
| Leah Zhorne | Natalie Ramsy* | Gamified Peds Neuro Transition-to-Practice Curriculum |
| Erin Crocker | Jess Smoko* | Preparing Residents to Respond to Agitated Patients: A Simulation-Based Pilot Project |
| James DeAndrade | Brandon Toliver* | Minimally Invasive Surgery Skills for Medical Students |
| Kelly Ledbetter | Kelly Ledbetter | Implementation of Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) in Plastic Surgery Training Through National Pilot Participation |
| John Keech | John Keech | Real-Time AI-Augmented Debriefing in Simulation-Based Medical Education: Feasibility, Quality, and Educational Impact |
| Manish Suneja | Anuradha Gore | Resident Wellness Toolkit: A Multimodal Approach to Building Resilience and Reducing Burnout in Training |
| Kathleen Dlouhy | Katherine Jensen* | Implementation of Renewal and Revision of the Iowa Neurosurgery Wet Laboratory Curriculum |
* = Resident/Fellow Project Lead
2025-2026
Program Director | Project Lead | Title |
| Manish Suneja, MD | Marie Finkbeiner, MD | Advancing Clinical Competency through Bedside Procedure Simulation in Internal Medicine Training |
Manish Suneja, MD
| Aubriannah Larson, MD Patrick Vosters, MD | Stronger Together: Advancing Wellness & Collaboration Across Residency and Fellowship |
| Andrea Weber, MD | Shivali Patel, MD | Enhancing Financial Wellness for Healthcare Professionals: A Comprehensive Financial Literacy Program for Residents and Learners |
| Manish Suneja, MD | Jennifer Strouse, MD | Utilizing Individualized Learning Plans to Transform the UME-to-GME Transition Curriculum |
| Chad Tracy, MD | Ken Nepple, MD | AI at UI: Empowering UI Residents with AI Tools in Epic for Documentation, Wellness, and Leadership |
Manish Suneja, MD
| Matthew Soltys, MD, MME | Improving GME QI Through Gamification & Simulation |
| Matthew Karam, MD | Steven Long, PhD | Comparing the benefits of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality skills training for Orthopedic Surgery Residents |
| James DeAndrade, MD | Darren Gordon, MD | Iowa Strong – Surgical Social Enrichment Program (SSEP) 2.0 |
| Pavlina Kemp, MD | Paige Noble, MD | Iowa Ophthalmology Laser Curriculum |
| Matthew Karam, MD | Joseph Buckwalter V, MD, PhD | Advancing Surgical Proficiency: Validating a Scaphoid Fracture Pinning Simulator for Resident Training |
| James DeAndrade, MD | James DeAndrade, MD
| Chief resident general surgery clinic |
| Manish Suneja, MD | Tyler Maggio, MD | Electronic Health Record Simulations to Improve Outpatient Inbox Management during Trainee Transitions |
| John Keech, MD | John Keech, MD | Implementation of a Comprehensive Acute and Chronic Pain Mitigation Program for Cardiothoracic Surgical Trainees |
| James DeAndrade, MD | James DeAndrade, MD
| Simulation skills labs in surgical education
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2024-2025
Project Lead | PD/Department | Name of Proposal |
| Darren Gordon, MD | Julia Shelton, MD General Surgery | Iowa Strong – Surgical Social Enrichment Program (SSEP) |
Aygun Asgarli, MD |
Andrea Swenson, MD Neurology |
Integrating a Lifestyle Medicine Curriculum to Residency and Fellowship programs: A Pilot Study Assessing Feasibility and Provider Wellness |
Maen Aboul Hos, MD |
Rachael Nicholson, MD Vascular Surgery |
Reflective Practice Journals (RPJ) Initiative |
Catherine Coyne, MD |
Kelly Ledbetter, MD Plastic Surgery |
Fundamentals of Microsurgery for the 21st Century Plastic Surgeon |
Grace Alexander, MD |
Manish Suneja, MD Internal Medicine |
Humanism in Medicine as a Path to Resident Wellness |
Uwajah Uzomah, MD |
Kristin Plichta, MD Radiation Oncology |
Establishment of an Applied Brachytherapy course for Radiation Oncology Residents |
Justin Holmes, MD |
Manish Suneja, MD Internal Medicine |
Critical Care Crash Course: Bridging the Gap from Student to Resident in the ICU |
| Jay Yu, MD | Catie Metz, MD Radiology | Enhancing Radiology Resident Wellness, Education, and Transitioning to Graduate Medical Education through Technology – The Programmable Mouse | $3,053 |
Shriya Kane, MD |
Julia Shelton, MD General Surgery |
Using a Narrative Medicine Approach to Tackle Complex Topics in Medical Ethics |
$2,500
|
Sydney Bowmaster, MD
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Manish Suneja, MD Internal Medicine |
Development of a Distinction of Point-of-Care Ultrasound Track for Internal Medicine Residents |
$5,148 |
Tariq Mohammed, MD |
Elaine Binkley, MD Ophthalmology |
Digital Indirect Ophthalmoscopy |
$3,961 |
Victoria Tann, MD |
Brigit Ray, MD Family Medicine |
Simulation experience to Teach Medical Error Disclosure |
$2,530
|
Jeremy Chang, MD |
Julia Shelton MD General Surgery |
Development of Multidisciplinary Training Curriculum for Site Marking and Counseling for Ostomy Creation |
$5,320 |
Stefano Byer, MD |
Manish Suneja, MD Internal Medicine |
AI-Patient Experience (APEX) to Address Health Care Disparities |
$3,400 |
2022-2023
| Program | Project Lead | Name of Project |
| Pediatric Cardiology | Ravi Ashwath (Faculty) | 3-D Cardiopedia: Developing a Novel app (Application) to store and teach 3-D models of Congenital Heart Diseases |
Orthopedics
| Ericka Lawler (Faculty) | Assessing Faculty Evaluation of Surgical Performance with Global Rating Scores |
| Internal Medicine | Krista Johnson and Manish Suneja (Faculty) | Distinction in Health Equities Track for Internal Medicine Residents |
| General Surgery | Alan Reed (Faculty) | Collaborative Leadership & Professional Development During Surgical Residency |
| Obstetrics & Gynecology | Megan McDonald (Faculty) | Dilation and Evacuation Simulation |
| Internal Medicine | Lauren Zabel (Resident) | Utilizing Simulated Patient Encounters to Train PGY-2 Internal Medicine Residents to Lead Family Meetings |
| Emergency Medicine | Omar Shaban (Resident) | Neonatal Resuscitation Simulation in the ED |
| Internal Medicine | Cory Wilson (Resident) | Patient-centered team focused rounding (PCTFR) |
| Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine | Numra Aleem (Fellow) | Little Patients, Not So Little Problem: Evaluating the Feasibility and Applicability of a Modified Pilot POCUS Curriculum in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit |
| Urology | Ryan Steinberg (Faculty) | Development of the hands-on portion of a dedicated point-of-care ultrasound curriculum for urology residents |
| Internal Medicine | Sydney Bowmaster (Resident) | Development of a Point-of-Care Ultrasound Pathway for Internal Medicine Residents |
| Obstetrics & Gynecology | Megan McDonald (Faculty) | Improving Resident Wellness through Meaning-Centered Interventions |
Total: |
2021-2022
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Jennifer Strouse | Internal Medicine | Development of a Distinction in Medical Education Track within a Tiered Medical Education Curriculum for Residents |
Lovkesh Arora | Anesthesiology | ECMO Percutaneous Cannulation Simulation Study |
Elyse Brock | Hospice and Palliative Medicine | Utilizing Simulated Patient Encounters to Train OB/GYN Residents and Fellows on How to Conduct Goals of Care Discussions |
Elizabeth Cusick | Micrographic Surgery and Dermatologic Oncology Fellowship | Reflection Rounds: Humanism, Ethics, and Leadership - A multi-disciplinary resilience curriculum for residents: A pilot within 3 specialties: dermatology, ophthalmology and otolaryngology |
Ericka Lawler | Orthopedic Surgery | Developing a Surgical Skills Week Intensive for Mid-Level Residents |
Ravi Ashwath | Pediatric Cardiology | QR Code Utilization in Educating Members of Clinical Care Team - Paradigm Shift |
Derek Hupp | Internal Medicine | Humanities & Wellness in the Program: Multifaceted approach |
2020-2021
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Darrick Zirker | Hospital Dentistry | Chairside Digital intra-oral imaging for Dental Operatory |
Jordan Gainey | Radiation Oncology | Simulated Flexible Fiberoptic Laryngoscopy Training using 3D-Printed Models |
Nicholas Arnold | Internal Medicine | Advancement and Integration of Point-of-care Ultrasound (POCUS) in an Internal Medicine Residency |
Brian Swick | Dermatology | Education repository for dermatologic images of skin of color |
Ryan Steinberg | Urology | Needs Assessment and Faculty Development for a Dedicated Ultrasound Curriculum with Urologic Residency Training |
Jane Rowat Manish Suneja | Internal Medicine | A longitudinal faculty development program: supporting a culture of teaching |
Trent Davis | Diagnostic Radiology | Move and Motivate |
John Keech | Thoracic Surgery – Integrated | Proficiency Testing of Thoracoscopic Skills Using a Virtual Reality Mimetic Chest Wall and Lung Model |
Meghan Connett | Family Medicine | Improving Communication and Care for Patients with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Family Medicine Residency Training (for short: "ICC4IDD") |
John Keech | Surgery | Implementing game-based system-thinking training in surgical residents |
Paul Leonard | Anesthesiology | Normalizing Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Simulation |
David Dickens | Pediatric Hematology/Oncology | Board Preparation Knowledge Assessment Tool |
2019-2020
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Manish Suneja, MD | Internal Medicine | Multispecialty Toolkit for Instruction and Assessment of Entrustable Professional Activities |
Sarah Watson, MD | OBGYN | Utilizing Simulated Patient Encounters for Training to Give Bad News to OBGYN Patients |
Emily Hvidston, MD Kaitlin White, MD | Pediatrics | Spreading the Wealth: Encouraging Use of Institutional Resources for Resident Wellness |
Ravi Ashwath, MD | Pediatric Cardiology | Effectiveness of Virtual Reality Teaching for Trainees in Medicine |
John Keech, MD | Thoracic Surgery | Cadaveric Surgical Procedure Lab |
Roger Struble, MD | Internal Medicine | Humanities and Wellness Committee |
Michelle Riesselman, MD | Anesthesiology | Development and Implementation of a Model for Feedback in Anesthesia Residency and Intraoperative Situations |
Kelsey Koch, MD | General Surgery | Mentoring and Educating the Surgical Intern: The Role of Senior Residents |
2018-2019
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Archit Sharma
| Anesthesiology | Development of a Point of Care Ultrasound Service (POCUS) |
Jane Rowat | Internal Medicine | From an EPA-based OSCE to a Workplace-based Feedback and Assessment Program: Developing Mini-Structured Clinical Observations |
Jaclyn Haugsdal
| Ophthalmology | Renewal and Revision of the Iowa Ophthalmology Wet Laboratory Curriculum |
Muneera Kapadia
| Surgery | Development of a Communication Skills Curriculum for Surgical Residents |
Elizabeth Takacs
| Urology | Video-based Online Innovation for Curriculum Enhancement (VOICE) |
Manish Suneja, Jane Rowat, Kate Thoma, Debb Szeluga
| Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Anesthesiology | Reducing the July Effect: Using AAMC EPAs to Ensure Institutional Patient Safety |
2017-2018
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Nkanyezi Ferguson
| Dermatology | Video-based Assessment Tool to Improve Safety During Procedures for Dermatology Residents
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Manish Suneja, Jane Rowat | Internal Medicine | Interdisciplinary Intern EPA-based OSCE with Automated Just-in-Time Feedback |
Sheena CarlLee
| Internal Medicine | TIRED-Technology and Teaching to Improve Resident Wellness and Education |
Elizabeth Fitzpatrick
| Orthopedic Surgery | Innovative Anatomy Education of the Hand and Upper Extremity: The Use of Focused Surgical Dissection, Applied Clinical Concepts and Surgical Skills Assessment |
Marguerite Oetting | Pediatrics | Teen Screen |
Timothy Elgin | Pediatrics | Neonatal Golden Hour Simulation Project |
Nancy Williams | Psychiatry | Mindfulness for Residents (MfR): a Pilot Project |
Anthony Oberle | Urology | Iowa Urology Residents Innovating Education |
2016-2017
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Andrea Swenson Daniel Anderson | Neurology
| Lumbar Puncture Success: Comparing Ultrasound-guided and Landmark-guided Techniques
|
Jeff Pettit | Family Medicine/OCRME | Online Learning Modules for Non-Clinical Topics |
Nancy Williams | Psychiatry | Mindfulness for Residents (MfR): a Pilot Project |
Krista Johnson Manish Suneja | Internal Medicine | An Innovative Longitudinal Quality and Safety Curriculum for Residents |
Amy Stier Catherina Pinnaro | Pediatrics | Wellness in Medical Practice
|
Jason Wilbur Kate Thoma | Family Medicine | Improving Resident Handoffs through Observation and Feedback |
Jane Rowat | Internal Medicine | EPA Check Point at R1 Orientation |
2015-2016
Project Lead | Department | Name of Proposal |
Patrick McCarthy Tracey Morgan-Harris | Pediatric | Pediatric Mock Codes |
Michael Haugsdal Marygrace Elson Marc Pizziment | OBGYN | Design and Application of ‘Guided, Self-Directed Learning Modules’ in Graduate Medical Education
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Karolyn Wanat | Dermatology | Case-based Interactive Learning Using a Telemedicine Platform |
Kokila Thenuwara Rashmi Mueller Luke Linz Marcy Rosenbaum Debra Szeluga | Anesthesia | Use of a Mountable Video Device for Learner-, Peer-, and Self-Assessment of Clinical Teaching Effectiveness |
Kokila Thenuwara Rashmi Mueller Thomas Collins Debra Szeluga Scott Miller Amanda Skiftun Paul Leonard Marcy Rosenbaum
| Anesthesia | Hand Hygiene and Speaking Up: An Authority Gradient
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Rashmi Mueller Thomas Collins Kokila Thenuwara Muneera Kapadia Scott Sherman Paul Leonard Marcy Rosenbaum
| General Surgery | A Simulation Using a Bile Duct Injury Model to Teach Anatomy, Speaking Up to a Faculty Surgeon, and Surgical Error Disclosure to Resident Surgeons
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Chris A. Anthony Matt Karam Larry Marsh | Orthopedic Surgery | Assessment of Postoperative Pain and Narcotic Usage by Automated Mobile Phone Text Messaging |
Jane Rowat Manish Suneja | Internal Medicine | A Longitudinal Teaching Skills Curriculum for the Residents |
Zachary Smith Marcy Rosenbaum Manish Suneja | Internal Medicine | Night Time Brief Observations for Assessment of Residents |
Brian Shian Jason Wilbur Kate Thoma | Family Medicine | Point-of-Care Ultrasound (POCUS) Training for Family Medicine Residents |
Kate Thoma Jill Endres | Family Medicine | Integrating Blue Zones Power 9 into Physician Well-being Curriculum |
Deema Fattal Nick Jones | Neurology | Ready Residents: A Resident Wellness Proposal |
