A Qualitative Exploration of Pediatric Resident Perceptions of Autonomy in the Era of Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship

Abstract

Objective: Some pediatric residents report experiencing less autonomy when working clinically with pediatric hospital medicine (PHM) fellows than with attendings alone. We sought to explore pediatric senior resident (SR) experiences working clinically with PHM fellows, with a focus on characterizing fellow behaviors that could impact perceived resident autonomy.

Methods: In this qualitative study, we conducted virtual semistructured interviews with pediatric SRs. We recorded, deidentified, and transcribed interviews for codebook thematic analysis, making iterative adjustments to our codebook and themes until reaching thematic sufficiency.

Results: We conducted 17 interviews. A subanalysis identified key components of the resident mental model of autonomy, including independent clinical decision-making with 3 core qualifiers: 1) plan follow-through, 2) availability of a safety net, and 3) ownership. Our primary analysis identified 4 key themes (with a total of 7 contributory subthemes) describing resident experiences of autonomy, scaffolded based on an organizing framework adapted from Bronfenbrenner's ecological model including 1) microsystem factors (based on direct resident-fellow or resident-leadership team interactions), 2) mesosystem factors (based on fellow-attending interactions), 3) exosystem factors (based on fellow-intrinsic characteristics), and 4) macrosystem factors (cultural values, norms, and policies governing academic pediatrics).

Conclusions: Many factors impact perceived resident autonomy on PHM fellow-inclusive teams. Although some are related to direct resident-fellow interactions, many others are more complex and may reflect resident interactions with the leadership team, attending-fellow dynamics, and the influence of cultural context. Based on our analysis, we propose several best-practice recommendations directed at fellows, attendings, the fellow-attending dyad, and Graduate Medical Education programs overall.

Keywords: autonomy; graduate medical education; pediatric hospital medicine fellowship.