Teaching quality in neurosurgery: quantitating outcomes over time

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Neurosurgery Training
• Faculty Development

Background:

• High-quality neurosurgery residency training is crucial for developing competent surgeons.
• Validated tools for assessing faculty teaching performance are underutilized in Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) programs.
• The long-term impact of these assessment tools on teaching improvement and educational outcomes requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of implementing a faculty evaluation system for providing teaching performance feedback in a neurosurgery residency program over four years.

Main Methods:

• A prospective cohort study utilized a modified System for Evaluation of Teaching Qualities (SETQ) instrument administered to neurosurgical trainees every six months.
• Analysis focused on subscale score dynamics to identify key factors in faculty performance improvement.
• Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) program survey results and trainee board examination performance were compared pre- and post-SETQ implementation.

Main Results:

• A high trainee response rate (91.8%) yielded 1044 surveys for 41 faculty members.
• Faculty performance scores demonstrated progressive improvement across six evaluation cycles.
• Providing positive feedback to trainees emerged as the strongest correlate of overall performance improvement.
• Post-implementation, significant increases in written board examination scores and ACGME resident survey results were observed compared to national averages.

Conclusions:

• Implementation of the SETQ system correlated with significant improvements in faculty teaching performance, as perceived by trainees over a four-year period.
• The evaluation system informed curricular adjustments, leading to enhanced educational outcomes within the neurosurgery training program.