Fit2Perform: European society of thoracic surgery survey on member well-being

A certain level of physical and psychological well-being is essential for surgeons to achieve optimal performance and patients' outcomes. This study presents the results of a survey conducted by the European Society of Thoracic Surgeons (ESTS) 'Fit2Perform' (F2P) Working Group, aimed at evaluating the overall well-being of the thoracic surgical community.

A 50-item survey was designed by the ESTS F2P Working Group and distributed to ESTS members between January and February 2024 anonymously. Descriptive data were presented as frequencies with absolute number and percentages. Subgroup analysis and interactions between variables were performed with Chi-square test, t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) as appropriate.

Among 1653 active members of 26 countries, 215 (13%) members responded. Most of them had more than 5 years' experience (89.8%) and were based in academic hospitals (69.3%). A significant higher satisfaction in the perception of work-life balance was found in respondents who were working less than 50 hours (P < 0.001) and in surgeons >50 years old (P < 0.001). Younger thoracic surgeons had increased risk of depression (P < 0.001), reduced quality of life scores (P = 0.005) together with an increased higher degree of emotional exhaustion (P < 0.001), depersonalization (P = 0.019) and lower degree of personal accomplishment (P = 0.004).

Our survey identified that young thoracic surgeons are at increased risk of depression, lower quality of life, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishment. These issues warrant further attention and analysis in order to identify underlying causes and to develop targeted strategies to improve surgeon well-being.