Autonomy and intraoperative teaching from faculty and resident perspectives

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training
• Resident Assessment

Background:

• Surgical resident autonomy is a key training goal.
• This study examines the link between autonomy and intraoperative teaching.
• Assessments are made by both faculty and residents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the relationship between resident autonomy and intraoperative teaching.
• To compare faculty and resident perceptions of these skills.
• To identify areas of agreement and discordance in surgical education.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 2,338 intraoperative evaluations (July 2014-June 2024).
• Utilized Global Rating Scale of Operative Performance and Zwisch autonomy scale.
• Correlation analyses examined faculty and resident ratings of autonomy and teaching.

Main Results:

• Moderate positive correlation between faculty-rated teaching and autonomy (r=0.45).
• Moderate positive correlation between resident-rated teaching and autonomy (r=0.37).
• Moderate correlation between faculty and resident autonomy scores (r=0.44), but weak correlation for teaching scores (r=0.13).

Conclusions:

• Strong internal correlation between autonomy and teaching reported by both faculty and residents.
• Significant discordance exists in the perception of intraoperative teaching.
• Need for clearer assessment criteria for surgical resident autonomy and teaching is indicated.