Needs Assessment for the Development of a Sustainability Curriculum for Surgical Residents.
Publication/Presentation Date
8-10-2024
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: The healthcare sector accounts for 8.5% of United States (U.S.) greenhouse gas emissions, of which one-third comes from operating rooms (ORs). As a result, there is great interest in decarbonizing the OR and surgical care. However, surgical residents are not routinely educated on the negative environmental impact of surgery or how to reduce it. In this paper, we present a formal needs assessment for a sustainability curriculum geared towards surgical residents.
METHODS: Using Kern's Six-Step Framework for curriculum development, we conducted focus groups with surgical residents to perform a targeted needs assessment on 3 main topics: 1) the current state of surgical sustainability curricula; 2) resident knowledge regarding the environmental impact of surgery and barriers to sustainable practice; and 3) preferred educational methods and topics within sustainability education. We audio-recorded all focus groups and performed thematic analysis using anonymized transcripts.
RESULTS: Fourteen residents participated in 3 focus groups, from which a qualitative analysis revealed 4 themes. First, surgery residents receive limited formal teaching on the negative environmental impact of surgical care or how to reduce this impact. Second, surgery residents have variable levels of prior education about and interest in sustainability in surgery. Third, several barriers prevent the implementation of sustainable changes in surgical practice, including a lack of institutional initiative, cultural inertia, concerns about workflow efficiency, and limited formal education. Finally, residents prefer to learn about practical ways to reduce waste, specifically through interactive approaches such as quality improvement initiatives.
CONCLUSIONS: Given the increasing importance of sustainability in surgery, there is an urgent need for formal resident education on this topic. This needs assessment provides a valuable foundation for future sustainability curriculum development.
ISSN
1878-7452
Published In/Presented At
Matthys, M., Wang, J., Sathe, T. S., Wang, K., Gandhi, S., Lee, H., Alseidi, A., & Sustainability Curriculum Working Group (2024). Needs Assessment for the Development of a Sustainability Curriculum for Surgical Residents. Journal of surgical education, S1931-7204(24)00292-7. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsurg.2024.06.020
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences
PubMedID
39129111
Department(s)
Department of Surgery, Fellows and Residents, Department of Surgery Residents
Document Type
Article