Proposals for Change in Orthopaedic Education: Recommendations from an Orthopaedic Residency Directors’ Peer Forum
Orthopaedic residency education currently faces a number of difficult challenges. Among them are the explosion of knowledge, the need to teach both the basics of orthopaedic research and surgical techniques, work-hour restrictions, the limited number of trainees, the growth in demand for surgery, greater specialization and complexity of patient care, more complicated resident evaluations, and the changing demographics, lifestyles, and values of theresidents1-7.
Although most orthopaedic residency programs around the country face the challenges listed above, and while several professional organizations recognize the current challenges to traditional orthopaedic residency training, there seems to be a lack of urgency to address them. The Hospital for Special Surgery convened a forum of educators, all of whom were program directors, from well-regarded residency programs across the country. The invitedprograms were chosen as representatives of a group of institutions that have shown leadership in residency training, have at least twenty residents
