Key result
~90% of senior surgical residents report procedural confidence regardless of total case volume.
Why the study?
Lack of self-confidence may prevent senior surgical residents from entering medical practice immediately, making measurement of confidence crucial for assessing preparedness to practice.
Cross-Sectional (n=127)
Yes
Senior surgical residents in Saudi Arabia report high confidence in performing common general surgery procedures, though the vast majority plan to pursue fellowship training, suggesting a potential need for modular surgical training formats.
High resident confidence uncorrelated with case volume cautions against using self-report for operative readiness; leaves open validation against objective proficiency metrics.
Background Self-confidence, one of the critical variables influencing surgical resident’s abilities, and lack of confidence maybe a reason for not entering medical practice immediately. Measuring the level of confidence of senior surgical residents (SSRs) is a crucial step in assessing preparedness to practice. In this study, we aim to measure their confidence level and the factors that might contribute to it. Methods Cross-sectional survey conducted at King Abdulaziz University Hospital on SSRs in Saudi Arabia (SA). Results Response rate was 89.4%. Among surveyed residents, 66% had completed < 750 cases as a primary surgeon. More than 90% of SSRs were confident in performing appendectomy, open inguinal hernia repair, laparoscopic cholecystectomy, and trauma laparotomy, while 88% were confident in being on-call in level-I trauma center. No difference was noted in confidence level in relation to the number of performed cases. Residents from the Ministry of Health accounted for 56.3% of the study population and showed a higher confidence level compared to others. 94% of SSRs plan to pursue fellowship training program. Conclusion The study showed that the confidence of SSRs in performing common general surgery procedures was as expected. However, it’s important to recognize that confidence doesn’t necessarily reflect competence. Considering the majority of SSRs planned to pursue fellowship training programs, it may be time to consider changing the structure of surgical training in SA to a modular format to allow earlier and more intensive exposure.
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Awlia et al. (2022) conducted a cross-sectional in General surgery residency (n=127). More than 90% of senior surgical residents reported confidence in performing common procedures like appendectomy and laparoscopic cholecystectomy, with no significant correlation to the number of cases performed.
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