Impact of resident participation and their role on clinical outcomes of patients undergoing cholecystectomy at a university hospital

Abstract

Introduction. Cholecystectomy is one of the most performed surgical procedures worldwide, so its learning is increasingly necessary for resident physicians in training, but without compromising the safety of patients. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of the participation of resident physicians on the main clinical outcomes of cholecystectomy. Methods. A prospective cohort study was performed, which included patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy from June 2019 to July 2020. Statistical analysis was carried out to describe measures of frequency, central tendency, dispersion, and bivariate analysis for outcomes of interest. Results. 482 patients who underwent cholecystectomy were included, 475 of them laparoscopically; 62.5% were women and 76.2% were performed urgently, and 96% of the procedures involved the participation of a resident. In the bivariate analysis, no statistically significant difference was found between resident participation and a negative impact on the clinical outcomes of the relevant variables. Discussion. There is no evidence that the participation of resident physicians in laparoscopic cholecystectomy is associated with adverse outcomes in patients, which suggests being related to an early and responsible introduction to this procedure by teachers, allowing cholecystectomy to be a safe procedure.