An immersive orientation programme to improve medical student integration and well‐being

Summary Background Multiple common challenges exist for medical students transitioning to regional clinical placements, including a relative paucity of well‐being skills required for the promotion of work–life integration. Beginning Education at Central Coast Hospitals (BEACCHES) is an immersive orientation programme aimed at negotiating this transition and promoting student well‐being through improved social connectedness. The programme was evaluated with the objectives of understanding the most highly valued and effective components. Method BEACCHES is offered to medical students commencing regional clinical placement at the Central Coast Medical School, Australia. The programme emphasises teamwork and self care, and promotes multidirectional interaction among peers, staff and the local community. A specific well‐being forum is an essential component of the programme. An evaluation of the inaugural programme was performed using semi‐structured surveys with a mixed‐method analysis of quantitative data (pre‐ and post‐programme knowledge and confidence scores) and qualitative data (emergent themes). Results Knowledge acquisition significantly improved across all domains. Importantly, this included items that could positively impact on well‐being, including: knowledge of psychological first aid (p = 0.01), student support services (p