What makes a “great resident”: the resident perspective

Abstract

Orthopedic surgery residency training is a difficult endeavor, and the selection of residents that will perform well in a rigorous training program is challenging for residency program directors. Even defining a “great” resident is a difficult endeavor. However, there are certain qualities that anecdotally are associated with high-performing residents, which include being trustworthy, hard-working and efficient, self-directed learners, detail-oriented, and personable. These qualities are difficult to teach and are likely learned by an individual during their early years of education and groomed during college and medical school. Individuals possessing these characteristics are more likely to bring a high-level of professionalism to their work as residents and to perform well on objective measures of success in residency such as high OITE scores, good faculty evaluations, and peer-reviewed publications. We discuss the available, but limited, literature on what makes a “great” resident and share the resident perspective on this topic.