2 - GENERAL SURGERY PROGRAM DIRECTOR PERCEPTIONS OF PGY5 RESIDENTS' OPERATIVE SELF-EFFICACY AND ENTRUSTMENT

Objectives: A 2020 survey of graduating PGY5 general surgery residents linked to the American Board of Surgery In-Training Examination (ABSITE) revealed significant deficits in self-efficacy (SE), or personal judgment of how well one can successfully complete a task, for 10 commonly performed operations. However, identifying whether this deficit is similarly perceived by program directors (PDs) has not been well established.

Methods: A survey was distributed through the Association of Program Directors in Surgery listserv. Using a 5-point Likert scale, PDs were queried about their PGY5 residents’ ability to perform the same 10 commonly performed operations independently. They were also asked about their PGY5 residents’ accuracy of patient assessments and operative plans for several core general surgery entrustable professional activities (EPAs) to establish an entrustment index. Results of this survey were compared to PGY5 residents' perceptions of their self-efficacy and entrustment based on the 2020 post-ABSITE survey. Chi-squared tests were used for statistical analysis.

Results: 101 responses were received, which represents ~30% of general surgery programs (342 total per 2022 Match data). Survey responses from PGY5 residents in 2020 represented 296 general surgery programs. Perceptions from PDs of PGY5 residents’ operative SE were highly concordant with resident perceptions, with no significant differences in SE observed for 9 of 10 procedures (Table 1). Both PGY5 residents and PDs perceived adequate levels of resident entrustment with no significant difference between the two groups for 6 of 8 EPAs.

Conclusion: These findings show concordance between PDs and PGY5 residents in their perceptions of operative SE and resident entrustment. Though both groups perceive adequate levels of entrustment, these findings also provide PD corroboration of a clear training deficit regarding operative SE for many core general surgery procedures, illustrating the importance of improved preparation for independent practice.