title: Selection bias: Examining the feasibility, utility, and participant receptivity to incorporating simulation into the general surgery residency selection process.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Opportunities exist to revise the current residency selection process to capture desirable candidate competencies. We examined the extent to which components of the American College of Surgeons/Association for Surgical Education simulation-based medical student curriculum combined with a teamwork activity could be used as potential screening method.
  
  
  METHODS
  Students participated in a workshop consisting of training/evaluation of knot tying, suturing, airway management, gowning/gloving, and teamwork. Surveys were given to medical students (MS) and faculty/resident/staff (FRS) to examine their opinions about the residency screening process, the most critical competencies to assess, and the effectiveness of each station for candidate evaluation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Communication (FRS, 4.86 ± .35; MS, 4.93 ± .26), leadership (FRS, 4.41 ± .80; MS, 4.5 ± .76), judgment (FRS, 4.62 ± .74; MS, 4.67 ± .62), professionalism (FRS, 4.64 ± .73; MS, 5.00 ± .00), integrity (FRS, 4.71 ± .78; MS, 4.87 ± .35), and grit/resilience (FRS, 4.71 ± .78; MS, 4.53 ± .74) were considered most valuable for candidate screening. The simulation-based curriculum for evaluation of residency candidates was rated lowest by both groups. Open response comments indicated positive perceptions of this process.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Employing simulation to assess candidates may be most beneficial for examining nontechnical attributes. Future work should continue to explore this area.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, UT Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd., Dallas, TX 75390, USA. Electronic address: aimee.gardner@utsouthwestern.edu.
authors.forename: Aimee K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Gardner
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Steffes
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, Burlington, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Dmitry
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nepomnayshy
authors.affiliation: Clinical Simulation Laboratory, Department of Family Medicine, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA.
authors.forename: Cate
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nicholas
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Warren D
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Widmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, MedStar Health, Washington, DC, USA.
authors.forename: Shimae C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Fitzgibbons
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Brian J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Dunkin
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, LSU Health New Orleans Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA, USA.
authors.forename: John T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Paige
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum; D005260:Female; D013502:General Surgery / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D015983:Selection Bias; D000066908:Simulation Training
keywords: Interview; Nontechnical skills; Residency; Selection; Simulation