Attrition rates among general surgery residents is 18 percent, with higher rates among women than men, according to a study published in JAMA Surgery.
Researchers performed a meta-analysis of 22 studies on general surgery residents that involved 19,821 residents. Here are four of their findings.
1. Women had a higher attrition rate from general surgery than men — 25 percent compared to 15 percent.
2. Most residents (48 percent) left after their first postgraduate year, and 80 percent left within the first two years of training.
3. Residents who left tended to go to another general surgery program (20 percent) or an anesthesia residency (13 percent).
4. The most commonly reported reason residents left a general surgery program was an uncontrollable lifestyle change (12 percent to 88 percent) and transferring to another specialty (19 percent to 39 percent).
"Future studies should focus on developing interventions to limit resident attrition," the study authors concluded.