Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication Date

3-12-2026

Abstract

Introduction: Effective intraoperative feedback is a cornerstone of surgical training, but remains inconsistently delivered. Surgeons who never received structured feedback during their own training lack the tools to deliver it effectively. At our institution, low faculty engagement scores on an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) survey prompted a residency-wide needs assessment, which revealed that most attendings provide feedback perceived by residents as ineffective. To address this, we developed a simulation-based faculty development program grounded in the “Debriefing with Good Judgment” model. Our study aims to evaluate whether this structured intervention can improve the quality and consistency of feedback provided by surgical faculty.

Methods: This single-center study involves general surgery attendings at a mid-sized academic residency. The intervention includes didactic instruction and simulation-based feedback practice. Attendings complete pre-, post-, and three-month follow-up surveys assessing confidence and implementation. Live intraoperative feedback sessions will be observed, with individualized coaching provided. Residents complete parallel surveys to assess changes in feedback quality. Program-level impact will be measured through pre- and post-intervention comparisons of ACGME resident survey data.

Results: Resident evaluations of 42 attendings revealed that few were consistently perceived as delivering effective feedback. Attendings with over 20 years of experience were significantly more likely to be viewed as delivering effective feedback. These faculty trained under hierarchical models with pyramidal structures and unrestricted duty hours, environments that prioritized autonomy over formal feedback. Despite this, they appear to have developed or retained effective feedback skills. Experience may improve intraoperative comfort and cognitive bandwidth, enabling more intentional teaching.

Conclusion: The didactic and simulation-based curriculum will launch this fall, followed by live intraoperative coaching sessions after attendingresident debriefings. Three-month follow-up surveys from both attendings and residents will assess retention and application of feedback strategies. ACGME resident survey data will then be re-analyzed to evaluate broader program impact.

Comments

American College of Surgeons 2026 ACS Surgical Simulation Summit, March 12-13, 2025, Chicago, IL   

Download

Share

COinS