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Educational challenges and opportunities for the future generation of surgeons: a scoping review

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Abstract

Purpose

Surgery offers exciting opportunities but comes with demanding challenges that require attention from both surgical program administrators and aspiring surgeons. The hashtag #NoTrainingTodayNoSurgeonsTomorrow on 𝕏 (previously Twitter) underscores the importance of ongoing training. Our scoping review identifies educational challenges and opportunities for the next generation of surgeons, analyzing existing studies and filling gaps in the literature.

Methods

Following the PRISMA guidelines, MEDLINE/PubMed was searched in February 2022, using the MeSH terms “surgeons/education,” for articles in English or German on general, abdominal, thoracic, vascular, and hand surgery and traumatology targeting medical students, surgical residents, future surgeons, and fellows.

Results

The initial search yielded 1448 results. After a step-by-step evaluation process, 32 publications remained for complete review. Three main topics emerged: surgical innovations and training (n = 7), surgical culture and environment (n = 19), and mentoring (n = 6). The articles focusing on surgical innovations and training mainly described the incorporation of structured surgical training methods and program initiatives. Articles on surgical culture examined residents’ burnout, well-being, and gender issues. Challenges faced by women, including implicit bias and sexual harassment, were highlighted. Regarding mentoring, mentees’ needs, training challenges, and the qualities expected of both mentors and mentees were addressed.

Conclusion

At a time of COVID-19-driven surgical innovations, the educational and working environment of the new generation of surgeons is changing. Robotic technology and other innovations require future surgeons to acquire additional technological and digital expertise. With regard to the cultural aspects of training, surgery needs to adapt curricula to meet the demands of the new generation of surgeons, but even more it has to transform its culture.

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Data availability

No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.

Abbreviations

AI:

Artificial intelligence

EPA:

Entrustable professional activities

ETO:

Educational time-out

GA:

General autonomy

HPB:

Hepato-pancreato-biliary

PRISMA-ScR:

Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews

SCS:

Swiss College of Surgeons

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Visceral Surgery, Clarunis - University Digestive Healthcare Center Basel, University Hospital Basel and St. Clara Hospital, Basel, Switzerland

    Adisa Poljo, Rosita Sortino, Adrian T. Billeter, Beat P. Müller-Stich & Jennifer M. Klasen

  2. Department of Surgery, Lucerne Cantonal Hospital, Spitalstrasse, 6000, Lucerne, Switzerland

    Diana Daume

  3. Department of Surgery, Cantonal Hospital Thurgau, 8501, Frauenfeld, Switzerland

    Pascal Probst

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  1. Adisa Poljo
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  2. Rosita Sortino
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  3. Diana Daume
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Contributions

A.P.: Acquisition of data, writing – Drafting of manuscript, Visualization, Analysis and interpretation of data, Critical revision of manuscript; R.S.: Acquisition of data, writing—Drafting of manuscript, Analysis and interpretation of data, Critical revision of manuscript; D.D.: Acquisition of data, Analysis and interpretation of data, Critical revision of manuscript; P.P.: Study conception and design, Acquisition of data, Analysis and interpretation of data, Critical revision of manuscript; A.B.: Critical revision of manuscript; B.M.: Critical revision of manuscript; J.K.: Study conception and design, Acquisition of data, Visualization, Analysis and interpretation of data, Critical revision of manuscript, Supervision.

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Correspondence to Jennifer M. Klasen.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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We did not preregister our research with an independent, institutional registry. However, we did create a formal analysis plan for this study.

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Adisa Poljo and Rosita Sortino share first authorship.

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Poljo, A., Sortino, R., Daume, D. et al. Educational challenges and opportunities for the future generation of surgeons: a scoping review. Langenbecks Arch Surg 409, 82 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00423-024-03270-7

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