Resident Competence, Morale, and Psychiatric Training: II. The “High Risk” Training Program

Abstract

The authors surveyed residents, faculty, and training directors from 59 training programs to determine the relationships between training program characteristics and residents’ self-reported confidence, competence and program satisfaction. Smaller training program size, non-university-based training, hours of supervision, number of weekly faculty-resident supportive contacts, and faculty competence were significantly associated with residents’ self-ratings of competence, confidence and program satisfaction. More modest (but significant) associations were found between the dependent variables and residents’salary, psychotherapy provisions, number of nights on call/month and days of vacation. Program factors reflecting the nature of resident-faculty relationships were more predictive of residents’ self-ratings than were their demographic characteristics. While it may not be feasible to develop a robust model of the “high risk resident” it maybe possible to develop a model of the “high risk training program.”