05-20-2020, 04:27 PM
It’s tough to explain to someone what education in residency is like, but if you go in with the expectation that you will be formerly taught how to operate you are likely to be disappointed. There are some amazing surgical educators out there that will literally walk you through an entire procedure, but sadly these people are rare no matter where you go. Most of your learning comes from watching someone do a procedure, then executing it yourself when you are given the opportunity. The places quoted above with “great autonomy” have it because the surgeons there run multiple rooms; when they are busy in one you are expected to move the case forward in the other. It’s rare that during a busy day they will take the time to watch you struggle if you haven’t made progress, mainly because the case(s) just need to get done. When you do get to operate you often make mistakes, especially at first, and learn from them for the next time. When the case is over you have to replay everything in your head, go to anatomy text books to make sense of things, etc. Bottom line, essentially 99% of your education is going to be self-directed, and if you don’t realize this early you are likely to struggle.
