Bryan A. Whitson, MD, PhD

There is a recent and needed interest in fostering the maturation of surgical trainees, both in the scientific literature and the lay press. Much of this focus has been on the mentorship and educational development of the surgeon in training. As a point of reference, there were 56 citations in PubMed for the calendar year 2012 (January through September) with mentorship or educator and surgery as keywords. This spans the spectrum from conveying technical skills in the operating room and on the wards, to transferring knowledge, to navigating the intricate dynamics of starting a practice.

While there is a great deal of commonality between a mentor and educator, there are subtle differences. Merriam-Webster has a definition of a mentor as "a trusted counselor or guide." An educator is defined as "one skilled in teaching." As what I believe to be a demonstration of the understanding that there are nuances of becoming a skilled educator, the Joint Council on Thoracic Surgery Education (JCTSE) and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) jointly sponsor the Educate the Educators (EtE) program. The EtE program’s purpose is to enhance the teaching skills of cardiothoracic surgery faculty.

I recently had the fortunate opportunity to attend and participate in this year’s EtE course held this July 27-29 at The William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. This informative course was directed by Dr. Edward Verrier (University of Washington), Dr. Ara Vaporciyan (The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center) and Dr. Stephen Yang (The Johns Hopkins University). The EtE program, which had 37 attendees, was run concurrently with this year’s Thoracic Surgery Directors Association 5th Annual Cardiothoracic Surgery Boot Camp.

The course focused on developing a framework for an effective educational environment – one where the trainee is able to learn, retain, and utilize the knowledge or skills. The need to engage learners at all the levels was especially poignant to cardiothoracic surgery education where the team and students span from medical students to general surgery residents to thoracic residents and fellows. Developing a deeper understanding of the level of pre-knowledge will become even more critical as integrated training programs expand.

Understanding the needs of the learner – especially as it relates to the development of curriculum – was a focus of Dr. Vaporciyan’s discussions. The field of curriculum development and assessment is beyond the scope of this article, but hinges on understanding curriculum as a process. The process begins with assessing the needs of the learner. It is followed by a thorough understanding of the goals and objectives of the educational experience. Finally, the materials, methods, and instructors are molded to best utilize their strengths. This approach ultimately makes the learning relevant to the trainee and optimally engages them. The ongoing engagement allows feedback to be best used to measure a trainee’s strengths and weaknesses. The educator then facilitates the process.

A large amount of time was dedicated to understanding the learner of today. This was spearheaded by a luncheon lecture and subsequent direct discussions with Dr. Mark Taylor, M.S.W., Ed.D on the generational changes of learners. What was most interesting, to this attendee, was the influence of intergenerational, cultural, and technological factors on the trainee of today and how those stereotypes (justified and unjustified) are carried through to the current training paradigm. Dr. Taylor’s talks were nicely augmented by those of Dr. Yang on utilizing deliberate teaching. This process focuses on setting objectives for a particular encounter (e.g., surgical case, bedside rounds, lecture) and providing feedback immediately.

The approach to deliberate teaching was especially relevant to today’s thoracic residency paradigm where work-hours are limited. To this end, an approach to maximally optimize learning, placing detailed background preparation with the trainee so that when they participate they are up to speed. That is to say, the majority of the content would be delivered off-line. The trainees are then held responsible for this information so that the learning encounter can be productive and focused on deeper understanding eliminating confusion.

Then the educational encounter would not be a regurgitation of information available elsewhere, but a conversation. This would enable the adult learner of the 21st century to utilize the study method and approach that is most effective for them and their lifestyle.

The commitment of the JTSCE and STS to improving thoracic resident education through the EtE program is outstanding. The EtE program is a very valuable resource for those with an interest in thoracic surgical education to expand their knowledge base.

There is a recent and needed interest in fostering the maturation of surgical trainees, both in the scientific literature and the lay press. Much of this focus has been on the mentorship and educational development of the surgeon in training. As a point of reference, there were 56 citations in PubMed for the calendar year 2012 (January through September) with mentorship or educator and surgery as keywords. This spans the spectrum from conveying technical skills in the operating room and on the wards, to transferring knowledge, to navigating the intricate dynamics of starting a practice.

While there is a great deal of commonality between a mentor and educator, there are subtle differences. Merriam-Webster has a definition of a mentor as "a trusted counselor or guide." An educator is defined as "one skilled in teaching." As what I believe to be a demonstration of the understanding that there are nuances of becoming a skilled educator, the Joint Council on Thoracic Surgery Education (JCTSE) and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) jointly sponsor the Educate the Educators (EtE) program. The EtE program’s purpose is to enhance the teaching skills of cardiothoracic surgery faculty.

I recently had the fortunate opportunity to attend and participate in this year’s EtE course held this July 27-29 at The William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. This informative course was directed by Dr. Edward Verrier (University of Washington), Dr. Ara Vaporciyan (The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center) and Dr. Stephen Yang (The Johns Hopkins University). The EtE program, which had 37 attendees, was run concurrently with this year’s Thoracic Surgery Directors Association 5th Annual Cardiothoracic Surgery Boot Camp.

The course focused on developing a framework for an effective educational environment – one where the trainee is able to learn, retain, and utilize the knowledge or skills. The need to engage learners at all the levels was especially poignant to cardiothoracic surgery education where the team and students span from medical students to general surgery residents to thoracic residents and fellows. Developing a deeper understanding of the level of pre-knowledge will become even more critical as integrated training programs expand.

Understanding the needs of the learner – especially as it relates to the development of curriculum – was a focus of Dr. Vaporciyan’s discussions. The field of curriculum development and assessment is beyond the scope of this article, but hinges on understanding curriculum as a process. The process begins with assessing the needs of the learner. It is followed by a thorough understanding of the goals and objectives of the educational experience. Finally, the materials, methods, and instructors are molded to best utilize their strengths. This approach ultimately makes the learning relevant to the trainee and optimally engages them. The ongoing engagement allows feedback to be best used to measure a trainee’s strengths and weaknesses. The educator then facilitates the process.

A large amount of time was dedicated to understanding the learner of today. This was spearheaded by a luncheon lecture and subsequent direct discussions with Dr. Mark Taylor, M.S.W., Ed.D on the generational changes of learners. What was most interesting, to this attendee, was the influence of intergenerational, cultural, and technological factors on the trainee of today and how those stereotypes (justified and unjustified) are carried through to the current training paradigm. Dr. Taylor’s talks were nicely augmented by those of Dr. Yang on utilizing deliberate teaching. This process focuses on setting objectives for a particular encounter (e.g., surgical case, bedside rounds, lecture) and providing feedback immediately.

The approach to deliberate teaching was especially relevant to today’s thoracic residency paradigm where work-hours are limited. To this end, an approach to maximally optimize learning, placing detailed background preparation with the trainee so that when they participate they are up to speed. That is to say, the majority of the content would be delivered off-line. The trainees are then held responsible for this information so that the learning encounter can be productive and focused on deeper understanding eliminating confusion.

Then the educational encounter would not be a regurgitation of information available elsewhere, but a conversation. This would enable the adult learner of the 21st century to utilize the study method and approach that is most effective for them and their lifestyle.

The commitment of the JTSCE and STS to improving thoracic resident education through the EtE program is outstanding. The EtE program is a very valuable resource for those with an interest in thoracic surgical education to expand their knowledge base.

There is a recent and needed interest in fostering the maturation of surgical trainees, both in the scientific literature and the lay press. Much of this focus has been on the mentorship and educational development of the surgeon in training. As a point of reference, there were 56 citations in PubMed for the calendar year 2012 (January through September) with mentorship or educator and surgery as keywords. This spans the spectrum from conveying technical skills in the operating room and on the wards, to transferring knowledge, to navigating the intricate dynamics of starting a practice.

While there is a great deal of commonality between a mentor and educator, there are subtle differences. Merriam-Webster has a definition of a mentor as "a trusted counselor or guide." An educator is defined as "one skilled in teaching." As what I believe to be a demonstration of the understanding that there are nuances of becoming a skilled educator, the Joint Council on Thoracic Surgery Education (JCTSE) and The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) jointly sponsor the Educate the Educators (EtE) program. The EtE program’s purpose is to enhance the teaching skills of cardiothoracic surgery faculty.

I recently had the fortunate opportunity to attend and participate in this year’s EtE course held this July 27-29 at The William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. This informative course was directed by Dr. Edward Verrier (University of Washington), Dr. Ara Vaporciyan (The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center) and Dr. Stephen Yang (The Johns Hopkins University). The EtE program, which had 37 attendees, was run concurrently with this year’s Thoracic Surgery Directors Association 5th Annual Cardiothoracic Surgery Boot Camp.

The course focused on developing a framework for an effective educational environment – one where the trainee is able to learn, retain, and utilize the knowledge or skills. The need to engage learners at all the levels was especially poignant to cardiothoracic surgery education where the team and students span from medical students to general surgery residents to thoracic residents and fellows. Developing a deeper understanding of the level of pre-knowledge will become even more critical as integrated training programs expand.

Understanding the needs of the learner – especially as it relates to the development of curriculum – was a focus of Dr. Vaporciyan’s discussions. The field of curriculum development and assessment is beyond the scope of this article, but hinges on understanding curriculum as a process. The process begins with assessing the needs of the learner. It is followed by a thorough understanding of the goals and objectives of the educational experience. Finally, the materials, methods, and instructors are molded to best utilize their strengths. This approach ultimately makes the learning relevant to the trainee and optimally engages them. The ongoing engagement allows feedback to be best used to measure a trainee’s strengths and weaknesses. The educator then facilitates the process.

A large amount of time was dedicated to understanding the learner of today. This was spearheaded by a luncheon lecture and subsequent direct discussions with Dr. Mark Taylor, M.S.W., Ed.D on the generational changes of learners. What was most interesting, to this attendee, was the influence of intergenerational, cultural, and technological factors on the trainee of today and how those stereotypes (justified and unjustified) are carried through to the current training paradigm. Dr. Taylor’s talks were nicely augmented by those of Dr. Yang on utilizing deliberate teaching. This process focuses on setting objectives for a particular encounter (e.g., surgical case, bedside rounds, lecture) and providing feedback immediately.

The approach to deliberate teaching was especially relevant to today’s thoracic residency paradigm where work-hours are limited. To this end, an approach to maximally optimize learning, placing detailed background preparation with the trainee so that when they participate they are up to speed. That is to say, the majority of the content would be delivered off-line. The trainees are then held responsible for this information so that the learning encounter can be productive and focused on deeper understanding eliminating confusion.

Then the educational encounter would not be a regurgitation of information available elsewhere, but a conversation. This would enable the adult learner of the 21st century to utilize the study method and approach that is most effective for them and their lifestyle.

The commitment of the JTSCE and STS to improving thoracic resident education through the EtE program is outstanding. The EtE program is a very valuable resource for those with an interest in thoracic surgical education to expand their knowledge base.

This year’s 92nd Annual Meeting of The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) reemphasized a bright horizon for thoracic surgery trainees. The consensus amongst trainees is that there is a markedly improved job market and that the professions commitment toward innovation, cutting edge technology, and excellence has rejuvenated spirits.

The AATS annual meeting highlighted this drive toward technologic innovation with minimally invasive cardiac and thoracic surgery, transcatheter aortic valve, endovascular thoracic aortic stenting, and mechanical circulatory support for heart and lung being emphasized.

The Thoracic Surgery Resident’s Association (TSRA), which represents thoracic surgery residents across the nation, presented Dr. Hiroo Takayama from Columbia University with the 2012 Dwight C. McGoon Award. The McGoon award recognizes a distinguished young faculty member in cardiothoracic surgery with an outstanding commitment to resident education and mentorship.

The outgoing leadership of the TSRA, Dr. Jason Williams (President) from Duke University, Dr. Stephen McKellar (Vice President) from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Dr. Tom Nguyen from Columbia University are to be commended for their hard work and enthusiasm in promoting trainee issues, stimulating trainee recruitment, and interest in thoracic surgery.

At this year’s AATS meeting, the TSRA organized and hosted the first annual Spouse Support Network Mixer. Approximately 25-30 residents and spouses attended the successful event, and the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association has agreed to support future resident and spouse events.

The TSRA/AATS Residents’ Luncheon featured a keynote address by Dr. John Calhoon, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in San Antonio. Dr. Calhoon commented on the importance of being prepared for the written and oral board exams.

In addition, Dr. Calhoon focused his talk on the complex nuances and need to create a balance of professional and personal development as trainees transition into their practice as cardiothoracic surgeons.

Over 3,200 copies of the TSRA Review of Cardiothoracic Surgery have been distributed internationally.

This useful book is a vademicum of cardiothoracic surgery knowledge.

The next educational project that the TSRA will undertake is a Primer of Cardiothoracic Surgery. The primer project, headed by Dr. Sam Youssef, will be a complementary book to augment the TSDA Boot Camp intended to ease the transition into thoracic residency.

There has been unprecedented interest in thoracic surgery resident leadership with 32 applicants for vacant positions on the TSRA Executive Committee.

The TSRA is committed to integrating newer training pathway residents. An ongoing dialogue of the role of faculty, traditional residents, and integrated residents as I-6 programs progress will be emphasized as general surgery residents and medical students are introduced to the field of cardiothoracic surgery.

Dr. Bryan A. Whitson is a resident editor of Thoracic Surgery News and a Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery Fellow at the University of Minnesota.

This year’s 92nd Annual Meeting of The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) reemphasized a bright horizon for thoracic surgery trainees. The consensus amongst trainees is that there is a markedly improved job market and that the professions commitment toward innovation, cutting edge technology, and excellence has rejuvenated spirits.

The AATS annual meeting highlighted this drive toward technologic innovation with minimally invasive cardiac and thoracic surgery, transcatheter aortic valve, endovascular thoracic aortic stenting, and mechanical circulatory support for heart and lung being emphasized.

The Thoracic Surgery Resident’s Association (TSRA), which represents thoracic surgery residents across the nation, presented Dr. Hiroo Takayama from Columbia University with the 2012 Dwight C. McGoon Award. The McGoon award recognizes a distinguished young faculty member in cardiothoracic surgery with an outstanding commitment to resident education and mentorship.

The outgoing leadership of the TSRA, Dr. Jason Williams (President) from Duke University, Dr. Stephen McKellar (Vice President) from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Dr. Tom Nguyen from Columbia University are to be commended for their hard work and enthusiasm in promoting trainee issues, stimulating trainee recruitment, and interest in thoracic surgery.

At this year’s AATS meeting, the TSRA organized and hosted the first annual Spouse Support Network Mixer. Approximately 25-30 residents and spouses attended the successful event, and the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association has agreed to support future resident and spouse events.

The TSRA/AATS Residents’ Luncheon featured a keynote address by Dr. John Calhoon, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in San Antonio. Dr. Calhoon commented on the importance of being prepared for the written and oral board exams.

In addition, Dr. Calhoon focused his talk on the complex nuances and need to create a balance of professional and personal development as trainees transition into their practice as cardiothoracic surgeons.

Over 3,200 copies of the TSRA Review of Cardiothoracic Surgery have been distributed internationally.

This useful book is a vademicum of cardiothoracic surgery knowledge.

The next educational project that the TSRA will undertake is a Primer of Cardiothoracic Surgery. The primer project, headed by Dr. Sam Youssef, will be a complementary book to augment the TSDA Boot Camp intended to ease the transition into thoracic residency.

There has been unprecedented interest in thoracic surgery resident leadership with 32 applicants for vacant positions on the TSRA Executive Committee.

The TSRA is committed to integrating newer training pathway residents. An ongoing dialogue of the role of faculty, traditional residents, and integrated residents as I-6 programs progress will be emphasized as general surgery residents and medical students are introduced to the field of cardiothoracic surgery.

Dr. Bryan A. Whitson is a resident editor of Thoracic Surgery News and a Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery Fellow at the University of Minnesota.

This year’s 92nd Annual Meeting of The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) reemphasized a bright horizon for thoracic surgery trainees. The consensus amongst trainees is that there is a markedly improved job market and that the professions commitment toward innovation, cutting edge technology, and excellence has rejuvenated spirits.

The AATS annual meeting highlighted this drive toward technologic innovation with minimally invasive cardiac and thoracic surgery, transcatheter aortic valve, endovascular thoracic aortic stenting, and mechanical circulatory support for heart and lung being emphasized.

The Thoracic Surgery Resident’s Association (TSRA), which represents thoracic surgery residents across the nation, presented Dr. Hiroo Takayama from Columbia University with the 2012 Dwight C. McGoon Award. The McGoon award recognizes a distinguished young faculty member in cardiothoracic surgery with an outstanding commitment to resident education and mentorship.

The outgoing leadership of the TSRA, Dr. Jason Williams (President) from Duke University, Dr. Stephen McKellar (Vice President) from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Dr. Tom Nguyen from Columbia University are to be commended for their hard work and enthusiasm in promoting trainee issues, stimulating trainee recruitment, and interest in thoracic surgery.

At this year’s AATS meeting, the TSRA organized and hosted the first annual Spouse Support Network Mixer. Approximately 25-30 residents and spouses attended the successful event, and the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association has agreed to support future resident and spouse events.

The TSRA/AATS Residents’ Luncheon featured a keynote address by Dr. John Calhoon, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in San Antonio. Dr. Calhoon commented on the importance of being prepared for the written and oral board exams.

In addition, Dr. Calhoon focused his talk on the complex nuances and need to create a balance of professional and personal development as trainees transition into their practice as cardiothoracic surgeons.

Over 3,200 copies of the TSRA Review of Cardiothoracic Surgery have been distributed internationally.

This useful book is a vademicum of cardiothoracic surgery knowledge.

The next educational project that the TSRA will undertake is a Primer of Cardiothoracic Surgery. The primer project, headed by Dr. Sam Youssef, will be a complementary book to augment the TSDA Boot Camp intended to ease the transition into thoracic residency.

There has been unprecedented interest in thoracic surgery resident leadership with 32 applicants for vacant positions on the TSRA Executive Committee.

The TSRA is committed to integrating newer training pathway residents. An ongoing dialogue of the role of faculty, traditional residents, and integrated residents as I-6 programs progress will be emphasized as general surgery residents and medical students are introduced to the field of cardiothoracic surgery.

Dr. Bryan A. Whitson is a resident editor of Thoracic Surgery News and a Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery Fellow at the University of Minnesota.