Implementation of Faculty-Led Didactics Increased Perceived Engagement and Preparedness in a General Surgery Residency Curriculum

Objective: Beginning academic year 2021, a curricular redesign was implemented, including a transition from resident-led to faculty-led lectures during didactics. We aimed to survey residents and faculty on their perceptions of engagement and clinical preparedness following this change.

Design: This was a retrospective cohort study investigating the effects of curricular change on resident and faculty perceptions of the program. Surveys were administered to residents in October 2022 and May 2023, asking about satisfaction with the curriculum, perceptions about faculty engagement before and after the curricular change, and how well didactics prepared them for different patient-care scenarios. Separate surveys were administered to surgical faculty simultaneously, asking their perceptions of resident preparedness in clinical settings and resident engagement in didactics.

Setting: This study took place at the University of Nebraska Medical Center from July 2021 to June 2023.

Participants: Participants included current general surgery residents and surgical faculty who work directly with the surgical residents at the institution.

Results: Residents were more satisfied and felt better prepared by didactic lectures led by faculty, and they perceived increased faculty engagement in their education compared to prior years with resident-led didactics. Faculty reported equivalent to slightly increased resident preparedness in clinic, inpatient, and operative settings compared to previous years, and those who gave a didactic lecture perceived equivalent to increased resident engagement during the lecture. The May 2023 survey findings for residents and faculty were consistent with those from 2022.

Conclusion: Residents were more satisfied with their didactics and perceived increased faculty engagement in their education when faculty gave their lectures compared to other residents. Faculty perceived similar to improved resident preparedness compared to prior years. These findings suggest that increased faculty involvement during didactics may enhance engagement and preparedness among surgery residents.