Elements of a Successful Program

Abstract

Building a successful team begins with having the right components, and in a residency, key members are the residents and the faculty members—learners and teachers. The task of selecting residents often takes into account quantifiable factors, such as standardized test scores, and subjective factors judged at an interview. Core faculty members must also be carefully selected to meet certain requirements.

The orthopaedic residency fits within the larger framework of the institution that assumes ultimate responsibility for resident training. Institutional support includes ensuring adequate time and compensation to the Program Director, Program Coordinator, and support staff. Additional support comes through accessibility of workspace, computer, Internet, and research resources.

The Program Director’s priority is to ensure the quality of resident education. This includes adequate supervision and oversight of duty hours. Having a yearly calendar of tasks is helpful in organizing the academic year. Successfully administering the residency also requires participation of an Associate Program Director, a Program Coordinator, and faculty members. Because of the increasing complexity of residency management, the Program Coordinator should have professional certification. Faculty members must be committed to resident education as well, and ongoing training is helpful for keeping up with regulatory changes.

Maintaining a successful program requires ongoing evaluation. Graduate performance, resident survey, faculty survey, case log metrics, resident performance on the Orthopaedic In-Training Examination, rotation evaluations, and research productivity are metrics to be considered.

By fostering a collegial environment, by providing regular formative and summative feedback, by ensuring confidentiality of evaluations, and by evaluating assessment metrics, lasting success can be ensured.