tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4968787219619380438.post7580739811643355142..comments2023-09-21T04:02:29.457-04:00Comments on Skeptical Scalpel: Does size matter? Surgery residency program size & board passage ratesSkeptical Scalpelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13206922456661320751noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4968787219619380438.post-48942083652331422552012-11-12T12:54:14.687-05:002012-11-12T12:54:14.687-05:00Dear John,
Thank you for reading my blog and comm...Dear John,<br /><br />Thank you for reading my blog and commenting. I understand your explanation of why you modified your paper.<br /><br />I was a PD for a small program for many years. I always thought the (then) 60% board passage rate on the first attempt discriminated against small programs. I wrote to the RRC to complain about it using the law of small numbers reasoning. They never even responded.Skeptical Scalpelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13206922456661320751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4968787219619380438.post-85363529293164307812012-11-12T10:24:41.143-05:002012-11-12T10:24:41.143-05:00Good morning. I am the first author on this paper...Good morning. I am the first author on this paper. I appreciate the feedback on its content. I wanted to say that the initial manuscript only evaluated compliance with the RRC/ACGME program requirements. However, the peer reviewers wanted "more" than a cross-sectional study for Surgery. So, the linear regression analyses were added. The law of small numbers is an excellent point. Of note, omitting the smaller residency programs (<15 residents over the study period) did not change the results of the analyses. Finally, there are numerous limitations of the study. We thought of many. However, length restrictions of this "Brief Clinical Report" precluded a more in-depth discussion. I agree that it is ultimately about the individual resident; there are a number of manuscripts depicting USLME, ABSITE, etc as predictors of board performance. However, the "n" in this study depends on the number of residency programs. At the program level, there is really not a lot of published data on board performance.John Falconenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4968787219619380438.post-49296396413647950462012-06-05T06:48:10.004-04:002012-06-05T06:48:10.004-04:00Brian, thanks for commenting. If you didn't se...Brian, thanks for commenting. If you didn't see my post on board exams and recalls, here is the link http://is.gd/UdQST2.Skeptical Scalpelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13206922456661320751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4968787219619380438.post-82343803144572151602012-06-04T23:26:16.134-04:002012-06-04T23:26:16.134-04:00Hi,
This is a great post, very interesting inform...Hi,<br /><br />This is a great post, very interesting information.<br /><br />Here is one more potential confounder: The bigger programs have more recalls that they can study from to help them pass their written boards. They also may have more time off built into the system to study for the boards.<br /><br />Thanks for another great post.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />Dr. Brian Sabb<br />www.linkedin.com/in/briansabbBrian Sabbhttp://www.linkedin.com/in/briansabbnoreply@blogger.com