The impact of residents' work-hour restrictions

Graduate medical education continues to deal with multiple stressors. The new work-hour regulations only add to the program directors' and department chairs' difficulty of ensuring adequate educational, didactic, and clinical training for the residents. Appropriately, patient safety has been a concern in the discussion pertaining to resident work hours. Ensuring that the training of our residents is adequate prior to their entering practice will also have a direct impact on patient safety. In this article, areas of concern are identified, and ways of continuing to evaluate and document the adequacy of resident training are proposed.