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Editorial| Volume 224, ISSUE 1, e1-e4, July 2022

Outcomes 101: A brief guide for conducting an outcomes research project as a surgeon-scientist in training

      Research has become a major component of many surgical training programs in recent decades as the concept of the surgeon-scientist continues to grow. Surgical residents become involved in research for a variety of reasons, including to gain experience in a field of interest,
      • Robertson C.M.
      • Klingensmith M.E.
      • Coopersmith C.M.
      Long-term outcomes of performing a postdoctoral research fellowship during general surgery residency.
      develop and foster relationships with mentors,
      • Healy N.A.
      • Glynn R.W.
      • Malone C.
      • Cantillon P.
      • Kerin M.J.
      Surgical mentors and role models: prevalence, importance and associated traits.
      and increase competitiveness for future fellowship and employment endeavors.
      • Fraser J.D.
      • Aguayo P.
      • St
      • Peter S.
      • et al.
      Analysis of the pediatric surgery match: factors predicting outcome.
      However, these opportunities can often be difficult to obtain for a multitude of reasons, particularly in the context of a demanding clinical workload.
      • Rothberg M.B.
      Overcoming the obstacles to research during residency: what does it take?.
      Here, we outline the basic steps of conducting a surgical outcomes project in an effort to make this valuable but daunting task more accessible to all trainees who are interested (Fig. 1).
      Fig. 1
      Fig. 1Suggested stepwise workflow for successfully completing a surgical outcomes research project.

      Abbreviations:

      IRB (Institutional Review Board)
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      References

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        Long-term outcomes of performing a postdoctoral research fellowship during general surgery residency.
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        Surgical mentors and role models: prevalence, importance and associated traits.
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        Analysis of the pediatric surgery match: factors predicting outcome.
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        Overcoming the obstacles to research during residency: what does it take?.
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