Harnessing Emotions to Enhance Feedback in the Emergency Department

Abstract

Feedback in graduate medical education is often felt to be inadequate, particularly in the Emergency Department where limited time and continuity hinder meaningful reflections. We introduced an emotion-linked debriefing model at three emergency medicine residencies, using structured prompts to explore both positive and negative emotions experienced during shifts. This approach encouraged richer feedback conversations, deeper trainee engagement, and generation of specific, actionable learning goals. Emotion-linked debriefing offers a practical strategy to enhance real-time feedback and warrants further evaluation of its educational impact.