Patients’ perspectives on the extent of resident participation in the operating room for total hip or knee arthroplasty

Introduction Previous work suggests that patients do not understand the extent of resident involvement in their care and are also uncomfortable with resident involvement. Methods We recruited 202 English speaking patients with previous or planned total joint arthroplasty of the lower limb for a prospective survey trial. We assessed participant's knowledge of resident level of education and confidence of resident involvement in their surgery as a function of supervision. Results Participants' mean level of confidence in the consultant surgeon was 4.30 (SD±1.13) on a 5-point Likert scale. Confidence in residents was significantly less, regardless of experience (p < 0.05). 11.1% of participants did not want residents involved in their treatment. 60.6% would like to know more about the education level of the trainee. Less than half of participants correctly identified the education level of residents and fellows. Conclusion Patient confidence in residents performing part or all of their surgery increases with resident experience and supervision. Compared with attending surgeons, patients have significantly less confidence in residents performing their surgery, including while supervised. Most patients do not understand the educational progression of medical trainees and would like to know more about the education level of the resident involved in their care. Further work should explore how we can help patients better understand resident involvement in their surgical care.