Life before and after residents: subjective reports on quality of life from urologists since inception of a new residency program

Abstract

Background: It is difficult to determine the effect of a residencyprogram on the life of staff urologists. The objective of this studywas to obtain subjective reports from urologists who have practicedbefore and after the implementation of a training program on howit affects their careers in 5 spheres: education, job-stress, free time,financial life and subjective quality of life.Methods: We asked urologists from McMaster University to completea questionnaire to quantify how their current experienceshave changed compared to the pre-residency program era on abalanced 7-point scale (4 = neutral).Results: The response rate was 100% (9/9). Eight of the 9 urologists(89%) reported they would implement the program againif they could rewind the clock. Eight of 9 reported their overallcareer-related quality of life improved, with an average rating of5.1 on the 7-point scale. The quality of continuing education wasthe most positive ranking at 5.4 followed by job stress at 5.2. Theoutcomes measured below 4 (neutral) were earning potential at3.8 and ability to engage in pastimes at 3.4. Earning potential wasclustered tightly around neutral, with 7 of the 9 respondents reportingno change. The largest standard deviation, corresponding tothe most disagreement, was in their ability to engage in pastimes.Conclusion: Even with a mild decrease in earning potential andincreased job stress, McMaster urologists feel their quality of lifeand continuing education have improved since the program’simplementation; these urologists are almost uniformly happy theystarted a residency teaching program at their centre.