The accreditation system of Italian medical residency programs: fostering quality and sustainability of the National Health Service

Summary. Background and aim: In June 2017, University and Health Ministries jointly enacted a decree imple-menting a new accreditation system for the Italian post-graduate medical schools (residency programs). We report the innovations introduced through the reform. Methods: Universities were called to submit post-gradu-ate medical school projects to the National Observatory on medical residency programs, the inter-institutional committee responsible for the entire accreditation process, through an interactive web platform. The adherence to minimum standards, requirements and the performances were measured. After this first assessment, universities were asked to provide programs of improvem…