"Plastic Surgery Program Leadership Perspectives on Wellness and Professional Development Curricula-Where are we...

Area of Science:

• Surgical Education
• Resident Wellness
• Plastic Surgery Training

Background:

• Burnout is prevalent among surgical trainees, impacting mental health and patient care.
• Wellness and professional development are increasingly vital in surgical education.
• Understanding current curricula and barriers is essential for effective interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the current state of wellness and professional development education in plastic surgery programs.
• To identify barriers hindering the implementation of dedicated wellness curricula.
• To explore potential solutions for improving resident well-being.

Main Methods:

• Electronic surveys were distributed to program directors and coordinators of plastic surgery programs.
• The study targeted 115 publicly available contact emails for integrated and independent programs.
• A 40% response rate was achieved from the surveyed program directors and coordinators.

Main Results:

• Burnout was reported in 78.6% of responding plastic surgery programs.
• While all program directors acknowledged resident wellness as a role, 78.6% felt it should be a shared responsibility.
• 40% of programs lacked dedicated wellness programming, yet 84.2% believed a curriculum would benefit trainees.
• Key barriers included lack of interest, time constraints, resource limitations, and concerns about academic focus shifts.
• A significant 83% of respondents expressed interest in adopting existing curricula from other institutions.

Conclusions:

• Burnout remains a significant challenge in over three-quarters of plastic surgery programs.
• The existing landscape of wellness and professional development curricula is inconsistent.
• Adopting established curricula from peer programs offers a viable strategy to surmount implementation barriers and enhance resident well-being.