Can the Surgery-to-Resident Ratio be Used to Determine the Ideal Number of Residents in a General Surgery Training Clinic? Single Center Experience

OpenAlex · İngilizce

• Optimal Resident Number Identified: The study determines that the optimal number of residents for maintaining high-quality surgical training at Gazi University Faculty of Medicine Hospital is 18. This number ensures adequate case exposure for each resident without diluting the educational experience, based on the Surgery-to-Resident Ratio (SRR). • Impact of COVID-19 on Surgical Training: The research highlights the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on surgical training, showing a marked decrease in the number of elective surgeries. Despite an increase in the number of residents, the overall case volume per resident dropped, emphasizing the need for adaptable training strategies during such disruptions. • Proposal of SRR Method: The study introduces the SRR as a systematic approach to determine the ideal number of residents in a surgical training program. This method can be adapted to various clinical settings to ensure that residents receive sufficient surgical exposure to complete their learning curves and develop surgical competence. General surgery is a fundamental medical discipline that requires extensive training to develop competent surgeons. This study examines the impact of the number of residents on surgical training quality in a general surgery clinic and evaluates the usability of the Surgery-to-Resident Ratio (SRR) in determining the ideal number of residents. Retrospective analysis. General Surgery Department, Gazi University Faculty of Medicine Hospital, Ankara, Turkey. Data from surgical residents at the General Surgery Department, collected from 2012 to 2023. The study analyzed the number of surgeries performed and the total number of residents in 3-month periods. The Surgery-Resident Ratio (SRR) was calculated by dividing the total number of surgical procedures by the total number of residents. The educational impact of the SRR was assessed to identify the optimal number of residents. In the 48 periods analyzed, the number of residents in our clinic varied between 12 and 26, with an average of 18.69. An increase in the number of residents led to a decrease in the total number of surgical cases per resident, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused a significant drop in elective surgeries. Excluding the COVID-19 periods, the SRR decreased significantly with more than 19 residents, suggesting that the ideal number of residents is 18 to maintain training quality. The study indicates that an optimal number of residents is essential for ensuring adequate case exposure and workload distribution, which are crucial for developing surgical competence. The SRR can serve as a useful guide for clinics in determining the ideal number of residents to maintain high training standards. Our findings suggest that while the number 18 is specific to our clinic, the SRR method can be adapted to other settings to ensure effective surgical education. The SRR method provides a systematic approach to determining the optimal number of residents in a surgical training program. Ensuring an adequate number of surgeries per resident is vital for their educational development and proficiency in surgical techniques.