Spouses of thoracic surgery applicants: changing demographics and motivations in a new generation

Applications to thoracic residency have decreased. The causes are multifactorial, but include changing motivations such as lifestyle concerns. Thoracic residents (TRs) have been well studied, but no one has ever characterized the influence or motivations of their spouses. We sought to evaluate the demographics and interests of TR spouses.

An electronic survey was sent to all TR applicants over 2 years at 2 training programs and to all current TRs in 2010. Recipients were asked to forward the survey to their spouses. Responses were analyzed globally and compared in subgroups.

Sixty-six surveys were completed and returned for a response rate of 19%. Among them, 86% of respondents were female, with 82% being married for a mean of 4.3 years. Fifty-nine percent of respondents had children and 64% were planning on having more children within 3 years. Hundred percent felt optimistic that they would be financially stable after training, but only 57% were optimistic about quality of life after training. Eighty-four percent felt that they had influence on the choice of training program. Almost 80% wanted more information on salary, housing, and access to faculty spouses. Quality of fellowship, geographic location, and proximity to family were the top 3 factors in choosing a program.

Nearly 90% of respondents reported they want to travel to more interviews, and nearly 90% of respondents reported having some to complete influence over which training program to attend. It is safe to presume, therefore, that applicant spouses are not only highly influential on TR applicants but also interested in greater inclusion in the interview process. The results show numerous demographic and characteristic trends which, if further validated by definitive studies, would be applicable to all post-surgery residency training programs and may help TR programs to be more competitive in attracting applicants and their families.