ATS
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

Ann Thorac Surg 2008;86:1061-1062. doi:10.1016/j.athoracsur.2008.08.047
© 2008 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Personal Folders
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Author home page(s):
Thomas L. Spray
Richard H. Feins
Michael J. Mack
Right arrow Permission Requests
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Chitwood, W. R.
Right arrow Articles by Mack, M. J.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Chitwood, W. R., Jr
Right arrow Articles by Mack, M. J.
Related Collections
Right arrow Professional affairs
Right arrowRelated Article

Editorials

Mission Critical: Thoracic Surgery Education Reform

W. Randolph Chitwood, Jr, MDa,*, Thomas L. Spray, MDb, Richard H. Feins, MDc, Michael J. Mack, MDd

a President, The Society of Thoracic Surgeons, Chicago, Illinois
b President, The American Association for Thoracic Surgery, Beverly, Massachusetts
c Chair, American Board of Thoracic Surgery, Chicago, Illinois
d President, Thoracic Surgery Foundation for Research and Education, Beverly, Massachusetts

* Address correspondence to Dr Chitwood, Department of Cardiovascular Science, East Carolina Heart Institute, East Carolina University, 600 Moye Blvd, Greenville, NC 27835 (Email: chitwoodw@ecu.edu).

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

During the last 50 years, education of cardiothoracic surgical residents and practicing surgeons has proven effective and has met the needs of our patients. However, today significantly fewer medical students and surgery residents are seeking cardiothoracic surgical training. During the last four years up to 55% of residency programs have gone unfilled and women continue to be underrepresented in our residency programs. This decreasing applicant pool portends a looming crisis, which has resulted from a combination of factors. With an increase in demand for cardiothoracic procedures due to an increasing and aging population, combined with a diminishing thoracic surgical workforce, the United States will soon be unable to provide adequate access for those needing cardiothoracic surgery. In addition to a shrinking thoracic surgical workforce, many residents are finishing programs lacking technology skills critical to the modern cardiothoracic surgeon, and some are not able to handle increasingly complex yet common clinical practice scenarios. This year alone 22% of residents failed the qualifying (oral) examination of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery. Combined, all of these issues could form a perfect storm for our specialty, if not addressed soon.

Over the last 10 years new technology for treating cardiovascular and thoracic diseases has advanced remarkably. The . . . [Full Text of this Article]


Related Article

You Never Know Unless You Try
George L. Hicks, Jr, John W. Brown, John H. Calhoon, and Walter H. Merrill
Ann. Thorac. Surg. 2008 86: 1063-1064. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]





HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
ANN THORAC SURG ASIAN CARDIOVASC THORAC ANN EUR J CARDIOTHORAC SURG
J THORAC CARDIOVASC SURG ICVTS ALL CTSNet JOURNALS
Copyright © 2008 by The Society of Thoracic Surgeons.