“I Wish They Had Asked”: a Qualitative Study of Emotional Distress and Peer Support During Internship

Abstract

Background: Interns are vulnerable to emotional distress and burnout. Little is known about the extent to which interns’ well-being can be influenced by peer support provided by their senior residents. Objective: To elucidate contributors to interns’ emotional distress and ways that peer support from senior residents may impact intern well-being. Design: Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews conducted December 2017–March 2018. Participants: Second year residents (n = 11) in internal medicine at a major academic medical center during the data collection period. Approach: Constructivist grounded theory approach in which transcripts were analyzed in an iterative fashion using constant comparison to identify themes and to create a conceptual model. Key Results: The investigators identified three themes around emotional distress and two themes around resident peer support. Distress was a pervasive experience among participants, caused by a combination of contextual factors that decreased emotional resilience (e.g., sleep deprivation) and acute triggers (e.g., patient death) that led to an abrupt increase in distress. Participants grappled with identity reconciliation throughout internship. Reaching clinical competency reinforced self-efficacy for participants. With regard to peer support, participants recalled that resident support was ad hoc, primarily involving task support and debriefing traumatic events. Participants reflected that their intern experiences shaped their supervisory support style once they became senior residents; they did not perceive any formalized, systematic approach to supporting interns. Conclusions: We propose a model illustrating key points at which near-peers can make an impact in reducing interns’ distress and suggest strategies they can use. Given the substantial role peer learning plays in intern development, senior residents can impact their interns by normalizing emotions, allowing vulnerability, and highlighting the importance of self-care. A formalized peer support skill-building curriculum for senior residents may empower them to provide more effective support as part of their supervisory efforts.