The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) late last week finalized changes in work-hour limits for first-year residents. The changes had been unveiled for comment in late 2016. 

Current ACGME rules limit the number of hours a first-year resident can work in a shift to 16 hours straight. ACGME convened a task force to examine the cap on hours, resulting in the unveiling of the proposal to return first-year residents to the 24-hour standard for other residents. To ensure continuity of patient care, the cap on hours for first-year residents will return to 24 hours with an additional four hours for care transitions