Advanced head and neck surgery training during the COVID-19 pandemic

Babak Givi; Michael G Moore; Arnaud F Bewley; Charles S Coffey; Marc A Cohen; Amy C Hessel; Scharukh Jalisi; Steven Kang; Jason G Newman; Liana Puscas; Maisie Shindo; Andrew Shuman; Punam Thakkar; Donald T Weed; Ara Chalian

doi:10.1002/hed.26252

Advanced head and neck surgery training during the COVID-19 pandemic

Head Neck. 2020 Jul;42(7):1411-1417. doi: 10.1002/hed.26252. Epub 2020 May 8.

Authors

Babak Givi¹, Michael G Moore², Arnaud F Bewley³, Charles S Coffey⁴, Marc A Cohen⁵, Amy C Hessel⁶, Scharukh Jalisi⁷, Steven Kang⁸, Jason G Newman⁹, Liana Puscas¹⁰, Maisie Shindo¹¹, Andrew Shuman¹², Punam Thakkar¹³, Donald T Weed¹⁴, Ara Chalian⁹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Otolaryngology, NYU Langone Health, New York, New York, USA.
² Department of Otolaryngology, Indiana University, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.
³ Department of Otolaryngology, University of California, Davis, California, USA.
⁴ Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.
⁵ Head and Neck Service, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York, USA.
⁶ Department of Head and Neck Surgery, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA.
⁷ Department of Otolaryngology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
⁸ Department of Otolaryngology, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
⁹ Department of Otolaryngology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
¹¹ Department of Otolaryngology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.
¹² Department of Otolaryngology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
¹³ Division of Otolaryngology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Otolaryngology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida, USA.

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted medical training. Here we assess its effect on head and neck surgical education.

Methods: Surveys were sent to current accredited program directors and trainees to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the fellow's experience and employment search. Current fellows' operative logs were compared with those of the 2018 to 2019 graduates.

Results: Despite reduction in operative volume, 82% of current American Head and Neck Society fellows have reached the number of major surgical operations to support certification. When surveyed, 86% of program directors deemed their fellow ready to enter practice. The majority of fellows felt prepared to practice ablative (96%), and microvascular surgery (73%), and 57% have secured employment to follow graduation. Five (10%) had a pending job position put on hold due to the pandemic.

Conclusions: Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, current accredited trainees remain well-positioned to obtain proficiency and enter the work-force.

Keywords: COVID-19; education; head and neck surgery; pandemic; surgical education.

MeSH terms

COVID-19
Clinical Competence*
Communicable Disease Control / organization & administration
Coronavirus Infections / epidemiology*
Curriculum*
Education, Medical, Graduate / organization & administration
Employment / statistics & numerical data
Fellowships and Scholarships / organization & administration*
Female
Head and Neck Neoplasms / surgery
Humans
Male
Occupational Health / statistics & numerical data
Otolaryngology / education*
Pandemics / statistics & numerical data
Patient Safety / statistics & numerical data
Pneumonia, Viral / epidemiology*
Risk Assessment
Surveys and Questionnaires*
United States

Abstract

MeSH terms

Grants and funding