Shift Length and Shift Length Preference Among Acute Care Surgeons.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Practice
• Workforce Management

Background:

• The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education mandated work hour restrictions for medical trainees in 2003.
• Current shift lengths for acute care surgeons are often longer than 12 hours, but their preferences are not well-documented.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the current distribution of shift lengths among trauma and acute care surgeons.
• To identify the preferred shift lengths of these surgeons.

Main Methods:

• A national survey was administered to collect data on surgeon shift lengths and preferences.
• Frequencies, percentages, medians, and standard deviations were used for data analysis.
• A chi-square test examined the relationship between shift preference and trauma center level, age, and gender.

Main Results:

• Data from 301 surgeons across 42 states were analyzed, providing a 5% margin of error for the estimated 4129 US trauma surgeons.
• Only 23.3% of surgeons currently work 12-hour shifts, while 72% expressed a preference for shorter shifts.
• No statistically significant differences were found in shift length preference based on trauma center level, age, or gender.

Conclusions:

• A notable discrepancy exists between the current long shifts worked by acute care surgeons and their preference for 12-hour shifts.
• These findings suggest a need to re-evaluate and potentially revise staffing models in surgical departments.
• Addressing this gap could lead to improved surgeon well-being and potentially patient care.