Monday, May 21, 2018

The requirement that residents must be involved in research should be abolished

In a 2012 blog post called “Things that puzzle me about surgical education,” I wrote the following:

“There was the emphasis that still exists today on making sure every resident did research. At last, some are questioning the value of this for the average clinical surgeon. Contrary to the prevailing wisdom, there is no evidence that a resident who is dragged kicking and screaming through a clinical research project or who spent a year in someone’s lab really learns anything about research or how to read and understand a research paper.”

Nothing has changed.

According to the ACGME Program Requirements for Graduate Medical Education in General Surgery Section II.B.5.e: Clinical and/or basic science research must be ongoing in the residency program; based at the institution where residents spend the majority of their clinical time; and performed by faculty with frequent, direct resident involvement.