This multicenter observational prospective study aims to explore the impact of peri-operative support measures (mentorship or coaching or intraoperative consultation) on the mental well-being of early career surgeons. Furthermore sub-analyses will be conducted to explore the impact that surgeons mental wellbeing related to different support measures could have on patients' outcomes
Adult patients (≥18 years) treated for abdominal general surgical conditions in the emergency or elective setting or for thoraco-abdominal traumatic diseases. The list of surgical procedures is reported in the Supplementary Material 1
Surgeries performed in elective, trauma, or emergency general surgery care
Patients operated by surgeons who completed general surgery residency more than 10 years before the study start date
Pediatric patients < 18 years of age
Patients or surgeons not willing to give their consent to participate
Early career surgeons: graduating in general surgery in the last 10 years Surgeons performing elective general surgery, emergency general surgery and trauma surgery
Cohort
Prospective
Peri-operative support measures [mentorship, intraoperative consult, surgical coaching, standard practice (no structured support)]
BehavioralMentorship: Formal (assigned by an institution or via an official program) or informal (personal relationship built during the career pathway) professional guidance relationships that support early-career surgeons in clinical decision-making, technical development, and emotional processing. Surgical Coaching: Structured, feedback-oriented discussions or sessions aimed at performance enhancement and reflective practice Intraoperative Consultation (IOC): Real-time assistance or second opinions provided by a more experienced surgeon or peers during a surgical procedure Standard practice: the surgeon performs the procedure supported by one or multiple assistants, as per internal hospital protocols and national/local regulations, receiving and providing natural feedback without a structured support system.
Burnout: Emotional Exhaustion
Maximun score 48. High scores relate to higher Emotional Exhaustion, contributing to higher burnout
Burnout: Depersonalization
Depersonalizzation (DP) considering the treshold of 10 points from the Maslach Burnout Inventory
Psychological resilience
Maximum score 40. High scores relate to higher resilience, contributing to potentially higher well-being
Perceived Surgical Performance
Sefl evaluation by the surgeon using a 5-point Likert scale (1) a procedure that did not go well at all, (2) a procedure that could have gone better, (3) a regular procedure, (4) a successful procedure, (5) a highly successful procedure
Perceived Surgical Performance by the assistant
Evaluation by the assistant using a 5-point Likert scale (1) a procedure that did not go well at all, (2) a procedure that could have gone better, (3) a regular procedure, (4) a successful procedure, (5) a highly successful procedure
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