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Trends in resident operative trauma: How to train future trauma surgeons?
Tashinga Musonza1, S Rob Todd1, Bradford Scott1
1Michael E. DeBakey Department of Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, MS: BCM390, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.
American Journal of Surgery
|September 22, 2019
Summary
General surgery residents experienced a significant decline in operative trauma cases over 29 years. This trend highlights the need to re-evaluate surgical trauma education for residents.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Surgical Training
- Trauma Surgery
Background:
- Trauma surgery is a core component of general surgery residency training.
- Assessing trends in resident operative trauma experience is crucial for curriculum development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate changes in the operative trauma experience of general surgery residents over a 29-year period.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) case logs.
- Data collected over the past 29 years for general surgery residents.
Main Results:
- A significant decrease in total operative trauma cases (79.6 to 29.9), gastrointestinal cases (10.6 to 4.0), and vascular cases (8.6 to 4.5) was observed.
- Resident involvement as a teaching assistant (5 to 1) and first assistant (17 to 1) in trauma cases also declined significantly.
Conclusions:
- The operative trauma experience for general surgery residents has markedly decreased over the last 29 years.
- This decline necessitates a focused re-evaluation of resident education in operative trauma management.
