Applicant Opinions of Task Simulation Exercises as Part of the Otolaryngology Resident Interview Process

Abstract

Objectives: (1) Characterize opinions of applicants participating in simulation during an otolaryngology interview process. (2) Describe the effect of task simulation on applicant impression of the host program. (3) Evaluate correlation between objective simulation performance and traditional rank order methods. Methods: Applicants completed pressure equalization tube (PET) insertion on a simulator following an instructional presentation. A published global rating scale (GRS) was completed by the resident proctor and time to completion was recorded. Applicants were informed that scores were not used in final rank order list. After the interview an online survey was sent to the applicants. Results: Forty-eight applicants completed PET simulation. Survey response rate was 81% (39/48). Inclusion of a simulation exercise during interviewing positively changed the opinion of 21% (8/38) of the applicants, with 1 negative response. The majority of respondents (88%) had no negative response to inclusion of simulation if GRS scores are not included in ranking process. If GRS results are used for ranking, respondents felt it was more fair if the task was non-novel versus novel (54% vs 23%). The inclusion of GRS results in ranking engendered negative opinions of the program (28% non-novel task, 46% novel task). Mean GRS score for applicants was 16 ± 0.98. Time to completion and GRS score were correlated ( P < .01), but neither GRS score ( P = .91) nor time to completion ( P = .31) were correlated to rank order. Conclusions: Simulated task performance may provide complementary information to that of traditional interviews. Inclusion in ranking may negatively affect resident perception of the program, notably if the task is novel.