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 15–17, 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:
Apply structured clinical reasoning to common and urgent patient presentations.
Recognize clinical deterioration and initiate appropriate early management.
Interpret common diagnostic studies, including ECGs, laboratory tests, and imaging.
Communicate effectively with patients, families, consultants, and healthcare teams using structured approaches such as SBAR.
Demonstrate selected practical clinical skills safely and effectively.
Identify patient safety risks and apply strategies to reduce medical error.
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