Otolaryngology Resident Well-Being and Perceptions of the Clinical Learning Environment

Abstract

Objective: To measure the current state of organizational and well-being factors in otolaryngology residency programs and associate these perceptions with demographics, pursuit of subspecialty fellowships, and performance on the Otolaryngology Training Examination (OTE). Materials and Methods: Anonymous mail and online survey study of otolaryngology residents from the Southern, Mid-Atlantic, and East South-Central Regions of the United States. Summary of Results: A total of 46 otolaryngology residents across 14 residency training programs (22% resident response rate) completed our survey. Residents who scored above the 80th percentile on the OTE perceived greater organizational support (median = 3.84) than residents who scored below the 40th percentile (median = 3.31), U = 48.00, P = .047, η2 = 0.14. Residents interested in fellowship reported less burnout (median = 2.44) compared to those who did not plan to pursue fellowship (median = 3.56), U = 105.00, P = .010, η2 = 0.05. Residents pursuing fellowship also reported less work–life strain (median = 2.56) than those forgoing fellowship (median = 2.89), U = 126.00, P = .044, η2 = 0.10. Residents with children reported greater work–life strain (median = 3.11) compared to those without (median = 2.56), U = 60.50, P = .008, η2 = 0.15. Conclusion: For otolaryngology residents in this survey sample, the perception of organizational support and well-being may influence resident performance (on OTE examinations) and ultimate career goals (fellowship applications). Program directors and coordinators can use this information to strengthen the perceptions of organizational support as well as improve the clinical learning environment to optimize training conditions for their residents. Residency program directors can also use the identified study measures to assess resident perceptions of the clinical learning environment and well-being for annual evaluation and improvement purposes.

Consequences of Medical Hierarchy on Medical Students, Residents, and Medical Education in Otolaryngology

“…9 Furthermore, those residents who perceived greater organizational support performed better on their yearly otolaryngology trainee examination. 9…”

“…From this search, an additional 432 academic articles were found, of which 47 were selected for further analysis. Articles were grouped as being not transferrable to medicine (23) or by the themes of hierarchy and team dynamics (12), impact on the follower (3), or theories of leadership (9). These themes have parallels related to resident education.…”

“…5,7,8 These, in turn, may influence trainee career choices, decrease patient care quality, and contribute to poor health and well-being. 7,9 The negative impacts of hierarchy also affect attending physicians, in particular, junior faculty. 10,11 Therefore, while well-structured hierarchy in medicine is commonplace, 8,12 the consequences of hierarchy on trainee education have not been critically examined.…”

Umfrage zum Bedarf einer e-Learning-Plattform für Ärzte in der HNO-Facharzt-Weiterbildung

“…Betrachtet man unter dem Stichwort "online survey" die Anzahl an Treffern pro Jahr bei "www.PubMed.gov", so zeigt sich ein stetiger Anstieg von 338 Suchergebnissen im Jahr 2006 auf 7756 im Jahr 2018. Mit 150 Teilnehmern und einer Rücklaufrate von 22 % ordnet sich die Umfrage mit einer überdurchschnittlichen Beteiligung in die internationale Literatur ein [14,15].…”

Umfrage der „Jungen HNO“ zur aktuellen Situation der Weiterbildung von HNO-Ärzten

“…Die Ergebnisse der vorliegenden Umfrage verdeutlichen, wie wichtig der persönliche und unmittelbare Kontakt während der Weiterbildung und die Bedeutung von Supervision, operativer Anleitung und Feedback für eine gute Weiterbildungsqualität sind. Eine vergleichbare Umfrage aus den USA zeigt die Bedeutung von struktureller und personeller Unterstützung der Weiterbildungsassistenten für Zufriedenheit und gute Ausbildungsresultate auf [26].…”