Resident perceptions and evaluations of fellow-led and resident-led surgical services

Background: The impact of fellowship training on general surgery residency has remained challenging to assess. Surgical resident perceptions of fellow-led and resident-led surgical services have not been well described.

Methods: Retrospective cross-sectional data were collected from residents' service evaluations from 7/2014 through 7/2017. Surgical services were categorized as resident-led or fellow-led. 31 variables were evaluated and collapsed into 7 factors including clinical experience, educational experiences, clinical staff, workload, feedback, treatment of residents, and overall rotation.

Results: Among all PGY levels, fellow-led surgical services were rated significantly higher (p < 0.05) regarding clinical experience, clinical staff, treatment of residents, and overall rotation. PGY1-2 residents rated resident-led services significantly higher in the area of educational experiences, while PGY 3 residents rated resident-led services higher in the area of workload. However, PGY4-5 residents rated fellow-led services significantly higher in all 7 categories. Individual fellow-led services were rated significantly higher for various categories at different PGY levels.

Conclusions: Surgical residents appear to value the educational experiences of fellow-led services. Each fellow-led service may ultimately provide unique educational opportunities and resources for different PGY levels.