How We Do It: Creation of a Workforce Development-Focused Track at a Surgical Hackathon

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Workforce Development
• Healthcare Innovation

Background:

• Traditional healthcare hackathons focus on device development and workflow optimization.
• Platforms addressing diversity and inclusion in surgery are limited.
• A novel workforce development (WD) track was proposed to address surgeon and trainee concerns.

Purpose of the Study:

• To expand the traditional healthcare hackathon model.
• To incorporate a dedicated workforce development track.
• To address concerns of surgeons and trainees regarding diversity and sustainability in surgery.

Main Methods:

• A single-day surgical hackathon was conducted at an academic medical center.
• Participants identified pain points related to diversity and sustainability in surgery.
• Interdisciplinary teams were formed to pitch solutions, with data analyzed from WD and traditional tracks.

Main Results:

• Of 57 problem pitches, 40.4% focused on workforce development.
• Key themes identified included training, leadership, mental health, discrimination, and work-life balance.
• The WD track showed comparable participant engagement and mentorship perception to traditional tracks.

Conclusions:

• The pilot WD track successfully identified 5 key themes of unmet workforce needs in surgery.
• WD tracks can be integrated into healthcare hackathons, yielding innovative solutions.
• This approach addresses surgical workforce concerns effectively and sustainably.