AB056. SOH24AB₀12. The impact of a student led surgical conference on student knowledge and interest in surgical training

Background: There has been a steady decline in interest in surgical training in the UK and Ireland. Although multifactorial, the reformed training pathways have limited opportunities to gain exposure and experience in surgery. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of a student-led surgical conference on the interest and knowledge of surgical training pathways. Methods: The University College Cork Surgical Society organized a conference targeted towards medical students. Specialties represented were neurosurgery, cardiothoracic, orthopedic, maxillofacial, colorectal, and plastic surgery. An anonymous digital survey was distributed to attendees following the conference. Ethical approval was obtained from the social research ethics committee. Paired sample t-tests and Wilcoxon signed rank tests were used in data analyses. Results: A total of 48.9% attendees completed the questionnaire (44/90). Students' self-reported knowledge of surgical specialties increased from mean 2.84±0.31 to 4.09±0.24 (P<0.001). Overall understanding of training pathways increased from 2.52±0.39 to 3.66±0.35 (P<0.001). Pre-clinical students' knowledge of specialties increased from mean 2.64±0.33 to 4±0.27 (P<0.001) and clinical year students' knowledge increased from 3.75±0.59 to 4.38±0.62 (P<0.05). Pre-clinical students' reported understanding of the pathways increased from 2.17±0.4 to 3.5±0.39 (P<0.001). Clinical year students' understanding of surgical training pathways increased from 3.63±0.43 to 4.5±0.45 (P<0.05). The most frequently perceived barrier reported to a surgical career was "Competitiveness of a surgical career" (36.4%), followed by "Work-life balance" (34.1%). Male and female students reported different perceived barriers. Nonetheless, 50% students reported they were more likely to pursue a surgical career after the conference. Conclusions: The study highlights the impact of educational strategies directed at undergraduate level. These have the potential to engage, educate and recruit future surgical trainees.