An evaluation of the West of Scotland in-programme Chief Resident role

Abstract

BackgroundPostgraduate leadership education is an evolving field. Locally we have an established ‘Chief Residency’ programme where centres have two to four senior trainees completing leadership duties alongside clinical workload, supported by local directors of medical education. This is twinned with a 4-day central training programme and peer-support network. MethodsTo assess perspectives of the CR role, we adopted a qualitative case-study design using an electronic questionnaire delivered to previous chief residents between 2020 and 2023. Results were analysed using thematic analysis. ResultsTrainees valued involvement within quality improvement and trainee support, demonstrating successful multi-departmental projects. Leadership education was viewed ubiquitously positively but participants felt further work is needed to address role legitimacy locally. A proposed solution was junior doctor leadership teams to address workload and emotional challenges. ConclusionThis model provides further evidence of the value in investing in trainee leadership positions, demonstrating organisational impact. Future work will research hospital peer leadership teams.