The Impact of a Virtual Orthopedic Surgery Symposium on MedicalStudents: Increasing Interest and Knowledge of the Field

Abstract

Background Orthopaedic surgery has been an increasingly popular field for medical students. Many schools offer elective time to explore areas of interest through clinical rotations and research; however, most are reserved for senior medical students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a dedicated orthopaedic surgery symposium to increase awareness about the field, and to assess students’ interest and knowledge of orthopaedic surgery before and after the symposium. Methods A one-day free, virtual medical student orthopaedic surgery symposium was organized. Abstracts were reviewed and selected from nine different orthopaedic subspecialty categories. Survey assessments were sent to medical students to complete before and after the symposium. The survey included questions related to participant demographics, as well as interest and knowledge about the field of orthopaedic surgery. Statistical analyses were completed to compare the participants’ responses before and after the symposium. Results In total, 962 medical students registered for the four-hour symposium. Of these, 58.5% completed the pre-symposium survey, and 48.0% completed the post-symposium survey. 13.3% of the respondents reported being “very knowledgeable” about the various orthopaedic surgery subspecialties before the symposium, which increased to 18.4% after the symposium (p=0.137). 46.9% of the participants stated that they were “knowledgeable” about the daily life of an orthopaedic surgery resident before the symposium, which increased to 67.3%, post-symposium (p<0.001). Similarly, the percentage of respondents who reported that they were “very knowledgeable” about the residency match process increased from 12.2% pre-symposium to 22.4% post-symposium (p<0.001). 61.7% and 80.5% of participants reported being “very satisfied” with the breakout room sessions and the educational panels respectively, with 84% of participants reporting they would recommend the symposium to others. Conclusions As the interest in a career in orthopaedic surgery increases, medical students desire access to information, mentorship, and opportunities to present their research in preparation for residency applications. Our study demonstrated that a large-scale national orthopaedic surgery symposium provided a platform to augment medical students’ knowledge of the field, present their research, and interact with faculty members.