key: cord-0853941-8k5jvzep
authors: Stoehr, Jenna R.; Hamidian Jahromi, Alireza; Gosain, Arun K.
title: Doctority: Plastic Surgery—An Informative Podcast for Applicants to Learn about Plastic Surgery Training Programs
date: 2021-07-22
journal: Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open
DOI: 10.1097/gox.0000000000003717
sha: 132d9f10cc328ef3eb4560e8c3516ce5d35ae22d
doc_id: 853941
cord_uid: 8k5jvzep

The COVID-19 pandemic limited the ability of medical students to participate in plastic surgery sub-internships and to attend residency interviews in person during the 2020–2021 match cycle. A podcast and accompanying online directory were created to introduce integrated plastic surgery residency programs to medical students from the perspective of current residents. Since July 2020, a total of 49 plastic surgery residents representing 42 programs have participated in the podcast. Topics of discussion included program logistics, faculty leadership, and aspects of resident lifestyle of interest to medical students and future residency candidates. The podcast has had a total of 5072 downloads (mean 121 downloads per episode). The majority of listeners (90%) were in the United States. Twenty-five plastic surgery applicants who participated in the 2020–2021 National Resident Matching Program match cycle responded to a feedback survey. Listeners reported that the podcast was useful for preparing for interviews, making rank lists, and learning about programs that they otherwise would not have considered. Most listeners (90%) ranked the podcast as one of their top three resources for learning about plastic surgery programs during the application and interview process. Future directions include completion of episodes for all integrated plastic surgery programs and expansion to other surgical subspecialties and plastic surgery fellowships.

The COVID-19 pandemic limited the ability of medical students to participate in plastic surgery sub-internships and to attend in-person residency interviews during the 2020-2021 National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) match cycle, during which 329 applicants sought 187 PGY1 positions offered across 85 integrated plastic surgery residency programs. 1, 2 This limitation led to the development of innovative educational resources and remote, asynchronous learning opportunities, such as virtual "meetand-greet" webinars hosted by the American Council of Academic Plastic Surgeons (ACAPS), increased social media engagement by individual residency programs, remote sub-internship experiences, and an international virtual self-study plastic surgery curriculum. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Despite these efforts, it was still challenging for applicants to navigate the digital landscape and find information to evaluate and compare programs. The "Doctority: Plastic Surgery" podcast was created to address this need and provide a useful resource for plastic surgery residency candidates.

Starting in May 2020, integrated plastic surgery residents were recruited via personal email or their residency program's social media account to participate in podcast episodes. Residents were also asked to recruit residents from other programs to participate. Residents were asked a set of standardized questions to facilitate comparison across programs. Episodes were recorded remotely via Zoom videoconferencing, edited with Audacity, an audio recording and editing software, and hosted via Jenna R. Stoehr, BA* Alireza Hamidian Jahromi, MD † Arun K. Gosain, MD* ‡

The COVID-19 pandemic limited the ability of medical students to participate in plastic surgery sub-internships and to attend residency interviews in person during the 2020-2021 match cycle. A podcast and accompanying online directory were created to introduce integrated plastic surgery residency programs to medical students from the perspective of current residents. Since July 2020, a total of 49 plastic surgery residents representing 42 programs have participated in the podcast. Topics of discussion included program logistics, faculty leadership, and aspects of resident lifestyle of interest to medical students and future residency candidates. The podcast has had a total of 5072 downloads (mean 121 downloads per episode). The survey link was sent to 43 applicants who either "followed" the podcast's Instagram account (n = 16) or posted their email address on the spreadsheet (n = 27). It was also promoted publicly on Instagram and the spreadsheet for two weeks. Twenty-five plastic surgery applicants responded to the survey (resulting in a response rate of 7.6% of all 2021 applicants) ( Table 1) . Respondents reported listening to a mean of 12.7 episodes (SD = 9.1). The majority expressed that the podcast was useful in helping them prepare for interviews (100%), make their rank lists (91%), and learn about programs they otherwise would not have considered (79%) (Fig. 2) . A smaller percentage reported that the podcast was influential in helping decide where to apply (33%) or interview (8%). Thirty-five percent reported that the "Doctority: Plastic Surgery" podcast was the most helpful resource to learn about programs, and 90% ranked it in their top three most helpful resources (Fig. 3) . The survey was publicized on social media (Instagram) and emailed to a cohort of matched plastic surgery applicants.

All respondents (100%) would recommend the podcast to a friend, and most (96%) recommended expanding to additional specialties. In narrative responses, listeners praised the consistency of the standardized questions, the comprehensive information provided, the program directory design, and hearing directly from current residents. To improve, listeners suggested asking questions about diversity and inclusion, adding an anonymous comment section to the website, and interviewing multiple residents per program and/or faculty members.

Podcasting is a convenient method of sharing information that has been utilized in the application process and curriculum for both medical school and residency. [8] [9] [10] It is especially popular in emergency medicine, internal medicine, family medicine, and general surgery, 8 and it has been identified as a promising educational tool during the COVID-19 pandemic. 11 Before the creation of "Doctority: Plastic Surgery," podcasting had not been used to profile specific residency programs in plastic surgery. Responses of listeners to the statement: "the podcast helped me…. " Listeners were able to indicate their agreement to the statements with a five-point scale from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree. " Plastic surgery podcasting began with the publication of the podcast of the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (PRS) in 2006. 12 There are multiple educational plastic surgery podcasts currently available ("PRS Journal Club" and "PRS Global Open Keynotes"), podcasts sponsored by other journals (European Journal of Plastic Surgery, Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive, and Aesthetic Surgery), podcasts by individual surgeons ("Plain Talk about Plastic Surgery," "Plastic Surgery Revision," "Plastic Surgery Experts") and resident-run podcasts ("The Loupe," "The Resident Review," "Quick Cuts"). 13 Of note, other podcasts focus on plastic surgery education for trainees and laypeople, whereas "Doctority: Plastic Surgery" is unique in that it specifically targets plastic surgery applicants and provides comprehensive information about multiple programs through the perspective of current residents.

The podcast was demonstrated to be an effective educational tool for plastic surgery applicants. The personal interview style between a medical student and a resident allowed for candid conversation on topics relevant to applicants' interests. The audio format of the podcast and streamlined website design provided a convenient way for medical students to prepare for interviews. In addition, the uniform interview structure facilitated program comparison. It was unsurprising that the podcast did not play a large role in the decision of where to apply or accept interviews, as students tend to apply to a large number of programs and weigh factors such as geographic preference strongly during that stage of the application process. 14 From the feedback survey, the podcast's true value was revealed as a principal resource in interview preparation and post-interview reflection before ranking.

Limitations include small sample size and the public distribution of the survey. The former issue reduces generalizability to all plastic surgery applicants, whereas the latter makes it difficult to verify whether the survey respondent listened to the podcast. In addition, by conducting the feedback survey after the match, it may have been more likely for matched applicants to respond than unmatched applicants, and match outcome could have influenced the perception of the podcast. These concerns could be mitigated by distribution of the feedback survey to a listserv of all plastic surgery applicants before the match results and/or the development of a podcastspecific listserv to distribute future quality improvement surveys.

Future directions include incorporation of listener suggestions, completion of episodes for all integrated plastic surgery programs, and expansion to provide residency information about plastic surgery fellowships and other specialties. Innovative methods of digital engagement like podcasting have the potential to benefit future generations of medical students even after the pandemic has resolved and help them make informed decisions as they proceed through the match process.

Virtual interviews during COVID-19: the new norm for residency applicants

Advance Data Tables: 2021 Main Residency Match®. National Resident Matching Program

Virtual rotations during COVID-19: an opportunity for enhancing diversity

Development and implementation of a plastic and reconstructive surgery virtual curriculum

Webinar during COVID-19 improves knowledge of changes to the plastic surgery residency application process

An update on social media in academic plastic surgery training programs: the rising trend of likes, shares, and retweets

Social media impact in the match: a survey of current trends in the United States

Podcasting in medicine: a review of the current content by specialty

Podcasting as a novel way to communicate with medical school applicants

This surgical life -an exploration of surgical department podcasting

Continuing medical education in the time of social distancing: the case for expanding podcast usage for continuing education

Podcasts on the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery website: the journal goes portable and audio

Podcasts in plastic surgery, why we should start listening

What makes a plastic surgery residency program attractive? An applicant's perspective