Operative experience of general surgery residents: Results of a cross-sectional multinstitutional study in Colombia

Abstract

Introduction. A critical part of training for a surgical resident is achieving sufficient operating volume to achieve adequate competence in their independent practice. Both volume and autonomy are challenges for general surgery residency programs in Colombia. Methods. A multinstitutional study was performed, with the participation of 5 specialization programs in general surgery, from different regions of the country. The electronic Logbook was used to record procedures for a period of 12 months. An analysis of the collected database was made. Results. A total of 111 resident physicians participated in the study. There were 29,622 surgical procedures registered, corresponding to 23,206 patients. Overall, 51.7% of the procedures were elective surgeries, 46.9% were urgent surgeries and 1% were emergency surgeries. 22.6% of the procedures were performed through a minimally invasive approach. The five most frequently recorded surgical procedures were: cholecystectomy (n=4341), appendectomy (n=2558), inguinal herniorrhaphy (n=2059), umbilical herniorrhaphy (n=1225), and peritoneal lavage (n=1198). On average, each resident performed 27 surgeries per month, and in these procedures the predominant role of the resident was that of the main surgeon, from early in their training (from the second year on). Discussion. It is possible to achieve a national record of activities through a log. Colombian resident physicians perform a number of surgeries similar or greater than those described in other countries. We must update our expectations based on the training currently received by resident physicians. © 2021, Asociacion Colombiana de Cirugia. All rights reserved.