Attrition from surgical residency training: perspectives from those who left

BackgroundHigh rates of attrition from general surgery residency may threaten the surgical workforce. We sought to gain further insight regarding resident motivations for leaving general surgery residency.MethodsWe conducted in-depth interviews to generate rich narrative data that explored individual experiences. An interdisciplinary team used the constant comparative method to analyze the data.ResultsFour themes characterized experiences of our 19 interviewees who left their residency program. Participants (1) felt an informal contract was breached when clinical duties were prioritized over education, (2) characterized a culture in which there was no safe space to share personal and programmatic concerns, (3) expressed a scarcity of role models who demonstrated better work–life balance, and (4) reported negative interactions with authority resulting in a profound loss of commitment.ConclusionsAs general surgery graduate education continues to evolve, our findings may inform interventions and policies regarding programmatic changes to boost retention in surgical residency.