Entrustable Professional Activities for Head and Neck Surgery Residents: A Consensus Model

To develop a standardized set of entrustable professional activities (EPAs) for Head and Neck Surgery residency training through expert consensus.

Consensus-based study using a modified Delphi methodology conducted over two rounds, with a priori agreement threshold of 85% for inclusion.

Academic and tertiary referral institutions involved in Head and Neck Surgery residency training in Brazil.

Eight expert Head and Neck Surgeons with extensive experience in residency education, academic leadership, and professional society participation. All invited panelists who entered the study completed this modified Delphi process.

Consensus was achieved on 18 EPAs specific to Head and Neck Surgery residency. Each EPA was mapped to core surgical competencies and stratified across five entrustment levels, ranging from observation but no execution, even with direct supervision (Level 1) to capable of independent practice and supervising others (Level 5).

This study established a consensus-based EPA framework for Head and Neck Surgery residency education. The proposed EPAs support competency-based assessment, progressive entrustment, and enhanced educational accountability, with potential to improve resident evaluation and patient safety.