CROMed-USA is pleased to present Ready for Practice: From Graduate to Clinician, an intensive transition-to-practice workshop designed for final-year medical students and recent medical graduates preparing to enter clinical practice.

This hands-on, case-based program is designed to help young physicians move from theoretical knowledge to real-world clinical decision-making. Through interactive teaching, small-group case discussions, skills stations, simulation-based learning, and structured debriefing, participants will practice the essential skills needed for their first days of clinical responsibility in urgent care, emergency medicine, hospital wards, or family practice.

Our workshop will take place in two locations this year:
Tuhelj, Croatia | September 12–14, 2026
Ljubljana Simulation Center Experience | September 15–16, 2026

Course Goal

The goal of this workshop is to prepare future physicians to approach real patients safely, recognize clinical deterioration, prioritize initial management, communicate clearly under pressure, and know when to escalate care.

Participants will work in small groups and rotate through practical clinical stations focused on common and urgent presentations, patient safety, diagnostic interpretation, communication, and hands-on skills.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

1. Apply structured clinical reasoning to common and urgent patient presentations.

2. Recognize clinical deterioration and initiate appropriate early management.

3. Interpret common diagnostic studies, including ECGs, laboratory tests, and imaging.

4. Communicate effectively with patients, families, consultants, and healthcare teams using structured approaches such as SBAR.

5. Demonstrate selected practical clinical skills safely and effectively.

6. Identify patient safety risks and apply strategies to reduce medical error.

7. Make safe decisions regarding admission, discharge, follow-up, and escalation of care.

Program Overview

Tuhelj Workshop: September 12–14, 2026

The Tuhelj portion of the program focuses on the transition from medical school to clinical responsibility. Participants will practice clinical reasoning, recognition of urgent conditions, communication, patient safety, and selected procedural and bedside skills.

Learners will be divided into small groups and will rotate through stations addressing high-yield clinical presentations and practical first-year physician challenges.

Program Agenda

Day 1  - Saturday, September 12

Foundations of Safe Clinical Practice

“How do I approach a real patient safely?”

• 8:00–8:30 Registration and coffee

• 8:30–8:50 Welcome and course orientation

• 8:50–9:20 Pre-course self-assessment and participant expectations

• 9:20–10:15 Thinking Like a Clinician

• 10:15–10:30 Break

• 10:30–11:15 The First Five Minutes: Recognizing the Sick Patient

• 11:15–12:00 ABCDE Approach and Escalation of Care

• 12:00–13:15 Lunch

• 13:15–17:50 Small-Group Clinical Reasoning Rotations

• 17:55–18:15 Group debriefs: What did we learn today?

• 18:30–19:15 Invited Guest Lecture: Medical Literature in the Age of AI

• 20:00–21:30 Group dinner at Castle Mihanović

Day 1 Clinical Reasoning Stations

Participants will rotate through five high-yield clinical presentations:

• Chest pain

• Shortness of breath

• Headache and neurologic red flags

• Abdominal pain

• Altered mental status

These stations will emphasize focused history, differential diagnosis, diagnostic prioritization, recognition of danger signs, initial management, and escalation of care.

Day 2 - Sunday, September 13

High-Yield Clinical Medicine and Patient Safety

“What decisions do I need to make, and what mistakes must I avoid?”

• 8:30–8:45 Morning briefing and recap

• 8:45–9:30 Medical Emergencies Every New Doctor Must Recognize

• 9:30–10:15 Antibiotic Decision-Making for Beginners

• 10:15–10:30 Break

• 10:30–12:15 Emergency Decision-Making Rotations

• 12:15–13:15 Lunch

• 13:15–14:00 Medication Safety: Common First-Year Errors

• 14:00–14:45 Diagnostics: ECG, Labs, and Imaging

• 14:45–15:00 Break

• 15:00–17:45 “What Happens Next?” Evolving Case Rotations

• 17:45–18:15 Patient Safety Debrief: Swiss Cheese Model and Upućivanje in Croatia

• 18:30–19:30 Dinner

• 20:00–20:45 AI in Medical Education and Practice

Day 2 Emergency Decision-Making Stations

Participants will rotate through focused emergency scenarios, including:

• Acute ischemic stroke

• Generalized seizure/status epilepticus

• Diabetic ketoacidosis

• Severe hypoglycemia

• Hypertensive emergency

Day 2 Evolving Case Stations

In the afternoon, learners will work through cases that change over time. Each team will decide what to do next as new information becomes available.

Evolving cases include:

• Fever and sepsis

• Syncope

• Acute weakness

• Worsening dyspnea

• Medication-related harm

These sessions emphasize reassessment, avoiding diagnostic anchoring, escalation of care, communication with consultants and families, and safe disposition decisions.

Day 3 - Monday, September 14

Hands-On Skills and Capstone Preparation

“Can I do the basic things safely and communicate clearly?”

• 8:30–8:45 Morning briefing

• 8:45–11:45 Hands-On Clinical Skills Rotations

• 11:45–12:30 Lunch

• 12:30–13:45 Capstone Session: The First Day on Call

• 13:45–14:15 Group debrief and preparation for Ljubljana

• 14:15–14:30 Closing of Tuhelj portion and transition to simulation center experience

Day 3 Skills Stations

Participants will rotate through five practical skills stations:

• Airway and respiratory support

• Vascular access and initial orders

• ECG and laboratory interpretation

• Point-of-care ultrasound fundamentals

• Procedures, handoff, and consultation

These stations are designed to help learners practice the practical skills and communication tasks commonly expected of new physicians.

Capstone Session

The First Day on Call

The Tuhelj workshop concludes with an integrated team-based capstone case. Participants will work through a realistic patient scenario that evolves over time. Teams will assess the patient, interpret diagnostic results, recognize clinical deterioration, communicate with senior physicians and family members, and make decisions about escalation and disposition.

This capstone session brings together the major themes of the course:

• Recognizing the sick patient

• Using the ABCDE approach

• Building and revising a differential diagnosis

• Prioritizing management

• Avoiding anchoring and premature closure

• Communicating clearly under pressure

• Preparing a safe handoff

• Knowing when to escalate care

Day 4&5 - Tuesday and Wednesday, September 15 -16, 2026.

Ljubljana Simulation Center Experience

Following the Tuhelj workshop, participants will continue to the Ljubljana Simulation Center for an immersive simulation-based experience. This portion will emphasize team-based care, clinical deterioration, escalation, communication, and realistic patient management scenarios in a simulation environment.

Who Should Attend

This workshop is designed for:

• Final-year medical students

• Recent medical graduates

• New physicians preparing for internship or early clinical practice

• Young physicians seeking practical preparation for urgent care, emergency medicine, hospital medicine, or family practice

Teaching Format

The course uses a highly interactive format, including:

• Short focused lectures

• Small-group case discussions

• Rotating clinical stations

• Hands-on skills practice

• Simulation-based learning

• Role play and communication practice

• Team-based capstone exercise

• Faculty-led debriefing and reflection

Course Materials

Participants will receive a concise course packet with practical tools, including:

• ABCDE assessment checklist

• SBAR handoff template

• Chest pain approach

• Dyspnea approach

• Sepsis initial management checklist

• Stroke recognition checklist

• ECG “must recognize” guide

• Common laboratory abnormalities sheet

• Antibiotic decision-making principles

• Medication safety checklist

• Admission vs discharge checklist

• Reflection page: “My First-Day Survival Plan”

Why This Course Matters

Many new physicians enter clinical practice with strong theoretical knowledge but limited experience making time-sensitive decisions, communicating under pressure, and managing uncertainty. This workshop is designed to bridge that gap.

Ready for Practice: From Graduate to Clinician prepares learners to think, act, communicate, and escalate safely when caring for real patients.

Presented by CROMed-USA

CROMed-USA is committed to strengthening medical education through collaboration between Croatian and U.S. healthcare professionals. This course is organized in collaboration with Društvom nastavnika opće i obiteljske medicine (DNOOM) and Hrvatskim društvom za hitnu medicinu Hrvatskog liječničkog zbora (HDHM HLZ). Our mission is to bridge the gap between theory and practice in medicine by supporting clinical reasoning, practical skills, patient safety, communication, mentorship, and international collaboration.

This course is offered free of charge to selected learners. Accommodation will be provided for the duration of the course. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be included. Transportation from Tuhelj to the Ljubljana Simulation Center will also be provided as part of the program.

Through this support, CROMed-USA aims to make high-quality, hands-on medical education accessible to motivated students and young physicians preparing for clinical practice.

Educate. Connect. Empower.

CROMed-USA Education and Programs Committee