APGO

Poster
Jaclyn B. van Nes, MD

Nikki B. Zite, MD, MPH , Patrick B. Barlow, BA , Allison Lockett, MS , Kimberly H. Hopkins, MD , Tiffany T. Smith, MA

Objective: Online surveys are frequently used to collect data due to low cost, immediate feedback and ease of use. The drawback of such surveys is that participation is a necessity for completion of the project. Online surveys are often used to evaluate various aspects of OB-GYN resident education, however, there is little data surrounding the evaluation process itself. This study sought to determine the value of the survey process and the implications of response or lack thereof.

Methods: An online questionnaire was e-mailed to residency program directors and coordinators at the 243 ACGME-recognized OB-GYN programs in July 2011. The survey involved questions related to robotic training in residency. Program directors and coordinators were asked to provide information on whether or not their program had a robot as well as who primarily used the equipment and the recorded ACGME procedural numbers for traditional and robotic hysterectomies. For this study, we reviewed the response rate and the methods of response for the surveys. In answering these questions, a missing data analysis was performed on the surveys in order to examine patterns of nonresponse.

Results: A total of 55 surveys were collected from 44 different residency programs nationwide. Of these 55 surveys, only two respondents answered all items in the survey. Only 8 respondents completely answered the first survey section, which requested demographic information on the residency program. The most important focus of the survey was obtaining accurate procedure numbers from programs over the past 5 years. 49 respondents (87.5%) failed to provide all of this information. Furthermore, none of the 5 respondents without a robot at their institution provided procedural numbers.

Conclusions: Survey-based research is a well-established method for assessing the needs, satisfaction levels and transfer of learning of medical residents. While such online surveys may seem useful in data collection, response rates can be low. The lack of response and data obtained from the OB-GYN program coordinators and directors made statistical analyses difficult. To better improve OB-GYN resident education, data sharing between programs should be facilitated. This study raises the possibility of a need for a national data repository for OB-GYN residency programs.