Dear Program Directors: There Are Numerous Entrustable Professional Activities on a Burns Rotation!

Area of Science:

• Plastic Surgery
• Burn Care
• Surgical Education

Background:

• Burn care is a core component of plastic surgery training.
• Resident training time is increasingly fragmented by subspecialties.
• Competence by Design mandates specific Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) for trainees.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the availability of 52 Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) for plastic surgery residents during burn rotations.
• To determine if burn rotations provide adequate opportunities for core skill acquisition.

Main Methods:

• An anonymous survey was distributed to plastic surgery residents via Survey Monkey™.
• Residents who completed burn rotations between January 2015 and December 2021 were included.
• Investigators pre-selected 26 relevant EPAs for assessment during the burn rotation.

Main Results:

• Seventeen of 26 assessed EPAs were completable by over 75% of respondents during burn rotations.
• These EPAs primarily involved acute burn care, inpatient service management, and quality improvement.
• Shorter rotations (<3 months) limited opportunities for complex wound care and reconstructive EPAs.

Conclusions:

• Burn rotations are valuable for acquiring Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs), refuting claims of being "low yield".
• Reduced exposure to burn rotations may negatively impact future community burn care delivery.
• Ensuring adequate rotation length is crucial for comprehensive resident training in burn management and reconstruction.