Elaboration and local validation of Entrustable Professional Activities in Palliative Care for resident doctors

The use of reliable professional activities (EPAs) can help identify which competences each resident doctor should develop during their training in palliative care (PC). The aim of this study was to elaborate and locally validate the titles of the PC EPAs in a teaching hospital in the north-east of Brazil. Of the 25 experts invited, 20 took part in the survey. The initial list of EPA titles was based on a free translation of a list of EPAs from the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. The modified e-Delphi method was used for validation. A quantitative Likert 1-4 scale on the importance of each EPA, analyzed using the content validity index (CVI), was used, followed by a validated qualitative 0-5 scale called Quality of EPA (QUEPA) and an open field for suggestions for each EPA. The EPA was approved if the CVI was > 0.8, and of good quality if the average QUEPA score was > 4. The records in the open fields were assessed qualitatively. It was possible to draw up and validate a list of 19 titles of PC EPAs for medical residents, which could help in the training and the assessment of these professionals.