Surgical Boot Camps Increases Confidence for Residents Transitioning to Senior Responsibilities

Surgical boot camps enhance the confidence of medical students and surgical interns. The impact of boot camps on the confidence of post-graduate year (PGY) 2 residents is unknown. We hypothesized that a postinternship boot camp would improve the confidence of PGY-2 residents in managing their newfound responsibilities. We also hypothesized that the effect of a tailored high-impact boot camp would persist over time.

A 2-hour boot camp at our simulation center was implemented for PGY-2 residents in 2016 and 2017. Confidence in handling boot camp scenarios was measured on a 1 to 5 Likert scale before and after the boot camp. Three-month follow-up was assessed in the 2017 cohort.

Thirty-one PGY-2 residents (n = 16 in 2016, n = 15 in 2017) completed the boot camp.

Residents reported increased confidence in placing central lines (p < 0.001), placing chest tubes (p = 0.01), managing emergency airways (p < 0.001), running a code (p = 0.03), and fulfilling the role of in-house senior resident (p < 0.001). Three-month follow-up in 2017 (n = 10) demonstrated no difference in confidence compared to postboot camp results.

Boot camps can durably improve confidence in skills expected of PGY-2 residents assuming in-house senior resident responsibilities.