Training of Family Medicine residents in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic

Smita Upadhyay; Rebecca Flora; Arezoo Rajaee; Beatrice Ugiliweneza; Ashley M Iles

doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1777_22

Training of Family Medicine residents in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic

J Family Med Prim Care. 2023 May;12(5):996-1002. doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1777_22. Epub 2023 May 31.

Authors

Smita Upadhyay¹, Rebecca Flora¹, Arezoo Rajaee¹, Beatrice Ugiliweneza^{2

3

4}, Ashley M Iles¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Family and Geriatric Medicine, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA.
² Department of Neurosurgery, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA.
³ Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA.
⁴ Department of Health Management and Systems Sciences, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, USA.

Abstract

Background: The immediate impact of the pandemic on resident training has been well documented. As the pandemic and its effects persisted beyond what was initially predicted, this study aimed to assess the impact of the pandemic on the training of family medicine (FM) residents a year after it began and to assess the burnout residents experienced during this period.

Methods: The survey was conducted between January 18 and February 18, 2021. Participation was solicited via an email sent to the program directors throughout the US, who were asked to circulate the survey among their residents. The questionnaire was divided into sections to assess the impact of the pandemic on clinical training, didactics, and preparedness for the next phase in the career. In addition, the burnout experienced was assessed using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory.

Results: 227 responses were analyzed. 83% (n = 186) of respondents felt that the pandemic had a negative impact on their training and 63% (n = 141) felt that the pandemic had a negative impact on didactics. 50% (n = 44) of the third-year residents thought that they would be able to meet the graduation requirement for outpatient encounters. 41% (n = 36) of the third-year residents felt less prepared for the next step in their careers. 119 respondents met the cutoff threshold for personal burnout, 134 for work-related burnout, and 65 for client-related burnout.

Conclusion: Residency training is difficult with high reported rates of burnout before the COVID-19 pandemic. This study reinforces the evidence that the pandemic made both mental well-being and adequate training more difficult for FM residents across the country.

Keywords: Burnout; COVID-19; clinical training; family medicine; resident training.