A Novel Mock Oral Curriculum for Senior Surgery Residents: Results of a Pilot Study

Introduction: The oral general surgery certifying examination (CE) is required for board certification. A curriculum was designed to improve CE passage rates at an academic residency program. Limited literature exists that evaluates a long-term mock oral curriculum for senior residents. This study aims to evaluate the impact of this curriculum on essential elements for clinical practice and CE preparedness.

Methods: The curriculum consisted of weekly meetings with postgraduate year four and postgraduate year five residents (n = 10). Two residents were selected for a video-recorded board-style mock examination with a faculty examiner and peer audience. Each attendee completed a standard evaluation form that assessed score, anxiety, confidence, and medical knowledge. Blood pressure, pulse, and unused time were assessed. A postcurriculum survey was conducted.

Results: Medical knowledge had the greatest correlation with overall scores (R² = 0.733). Positive correlations were seen between confidence and case number for faculty, self, and peer scores (R² = 0.671, R² = 0.566, and R² = 0.729, respectively). There was a positive correlation between confidence and medical knowledge (R² = 0.575). There was a significant difference between the overall score of nontachycardic versus tachycardic residents (P = 0.00994).

Conclusions: Residents demonstrated increasing confidence as they progressed through the curriculum by self-reported and objective measures. Residents demonstrated improvements in overall scores. Future directions will examine results of the 2-y curriculum experience and CE passage rates to verify that a standardized, structured, weekly, longitudinal curriculum is beneficial for CE preparedness and clinical practice.