A surgical residency preparatory course for senior medical students leads to earlier independence in ACGME competencies

Abstract Background It is unknown whether surgery residency preparatory courses lead to earlier independent practice. Methods A four-week surgical residency preparatory course was offered to graduating medical students. Upon entering residency, participants reported supervised and unsupervised performance of patient management and procedural competencies. Those who participated in the course (Group A) were compared with graduates from our institution who did not participate but entered surgery residency (Group B) and with residents from other medical schools in the same program as Group A (Group C). Time to independence was observed. Results Group A achieved independence earlier than Group B in 15/18 (83.3%), earlier than Group C in 14/18 (77.8%) and earlier than both in 12/16 (75%) competencies. Independence occurred 43.6 days earlier than Group B (range 6–112 days) and 49 days earlier than Group C (range 11.5–165 days). Conclusion A surgical residency preparatory course led to earlier independent performance of the ACGME recommended patient management and procedural competencies compared to students from our institution and others who did not participate in such a course.