Assessment of Otolaryngology Residency Training Program in Iran: Perspectives of Faculty Members and Recently Graduated Medical Students

INTRODUCTION: There is limited evidence regarding the quality of otolaryngology residency programs in Iran. Regarding this, the present study aimed to assess some aspects of otolaryngology residency program in the field of otology in Iran based on the perspectives of faculty members and graduates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was conducted on 105 recent graduates and 30 faculty members and/or program directors in otolaryngology using two self-administered questionnaires. RESULTS: While the faculty members believed that a resident should work on at least 5.4 temporal bone surgeries on average, the actual number was 2.49. Tympanoplasty was assigned the highest rate of satisfaction by the recent graduates, whereas the lowest score belonged to middle ear exploration, ossiculoplasty, and stapes surgery. Only 53.6% of the graduates stated that there was an organized training curriculum in temporal laboratory. The recent graduates reported to have more frequent experiences of performing usual otology operations. However, they had fewer experiences of performing more advanced surgeries. The recently graduated subjects had a significantly low level of satisfaction with their competencies in carrying out more complex types of otology surgeries. CONCLUSION: High prevalence of otology surgeries in Iran provides valuable opportunities for training otolaryngology residents to achieve an acceptable level of competency. However, the results of this study strongly suggest the necessity of quality improvement both in teaching-learning and assessment processes in otolaryngology training programs.