K. E. Bingmer1, C. M. Wojnarski1, J. T. Brady1, V. P. Ho2, E. Steinhagen1 1Case Western Reserve University School Of Medicine,General Surgery,Cleveland, OH, USA 2MetroHealth Medical Center,General Surgery,Cleveland, OH, USA
Introduction:
Mentorship is often identified as a key component in surgical education, and is associated with decreased rates of burnout and attrition. Residents are more likely to identify and meet with a mentor if their institution has a formal mentorship program (MP), which many residencies lack, possibly due to the perceived time and energy required to implement an impactful program. There is scant data evaluating the change in resident experience following introduction of a MP. We aimed to measure the difference in resident experience and perceptions after the implementation of a formal MP.
Methods:
An anonymous survey was distributed to all general surgery residents at a single academic institution before (PRE) and after (POST) implementation of a MP. The program involved assigned mentors for all residents, two social events, and a recommendation that mentors and mentees meet three times; all events and meetings were voluntary. Responses were recorded on a five-point Likert scale to assess differences in resident perception.
Results:
The PRE and POST respondents were similar in age, post graduate year, and gender (all p>0.05). Half of respondents (n=17, 53%) attended at least one event, and over half (n=21, 66%) had at least one meeting with their mentor. The maximum number of meetings reported was 4 (n=4). The number of residents who identified a faculty mentor increased from 59% PRE intervention to 75% POST. Mean responses to most questions were improved on the POST survey, however this was not significant. The most influential aspect of the program was found to be interaction with mentors. When stratified by number of meetings, residents with two or more mentor meetings (n=12, 38%) were more likely to feel faculty were interested in teaching and cared about their development (both p<0.001). They were more likely to identify faculty they could speak to about academic (p<0.001), performance (p<0.02) and outside of work (p<0.005) concerns. These residents were also more likely to be satisfied with the amount of mentorship received (p<0.002), as well as their operative and clinical skill levels (p<0.05). Overall, active participation in the program resulted in a positive effect on resident perception (Table 1).
Conclusion:
Implementation of a formal mentorship program resulted in an improvement in resident perception of faculty involvement and support. Meeting as few as two times with a mentor resulted in a significant improvement in resident perception. Simply implementing a mentorship program can improve resident experience, and few interactions are needed to affect change.
