An assessment of emergency medicine residency graduates' perceptions of the adequacy of their residency training

A study of emergency medicine residency training graduates was conducted to determine their perceptions of the quality of their graduate training. A sample of 300 individuals was randomly selected from a population of 1,000 persons graduating from 1982 through 1984. Respondents were asked to use a scale of 1 to 5 (with 1 being highest) to rate the adequacy of their residency training relative to 20 major core content areas. A 50% response rate (N=151) was achieved. Mean ratings of residents' perceptions of the adequacy of their training relative to the core content ranged from 1.7 to 3.24. Training in resuscitation and stabilization, principles of emergency care, and general assessment were among the most highly rated, while training in physician interpersonal skills, disorders related to the immune system, and cutaneous disorders were rated the lowest. Overall, residents were quite positive in their perceptions regarding the quality of their training. They indicated plans to attend continuing medical education programs to reinforce some of their training and to address some of the deficiencies they perceived in residency training. Programs are encouraged to conduct similar surveys with their own graduates to assess particular strengths and weaknesses.