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Objective: The position of general surgery residency program director (GSPD) has been well defined by governing bodies as an important educational role. Its impact on the individuals themselves has not been studied extensively. We aimed to examine the individual and professional impact of the role of GSPDs as seen by former program directors of general surgery residency programs., Design: This Institutional Review Board (IRB) exempt study conducted semi structured virtual interviews from May- September 2023 with former GSPDs. The research team consisted of 5 members who transcribed the interviews, coded the responses, and conducted a thematic analysis in an iterative consensus process. Final themes and subthemes were generated and representative quotes were selected., Setting: This study was conducted virtually at Wellspan York Hospital in York, Pennsylvania, a level-1 trauma center and community teaching hospital., Participants: A total of 19 former GSPDs were recruited via purposeful sampling and snowballing. All 19 participants completed the study interview., Results: GSPD responses were found to have 5 recurring themes and several subthemes. The themes included 1) Development as a leader, 2) Relationship building, 3) Proficiencies needed as a program director, 4) Transactional aspects, 5) Transformational aspects., Conclusion: Leading a general surgery residency program is an extremely impactful position that develops pivotal leadership skills, requires many proficiencies, relies on relationship building, and has aspects that are transactional and transformational. Holding the position of program director creates both personal fulfillment while 1 holds the position and has a positive professional impact in the subsequent stages of their career as a surgical educator., (Copyright © 2024 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Resilience is a vital quality for the successful completion of any residency training program. Resilience is a commonly used but poorly understood term and is defined in multiple ways by people during different times of their lives. The transition from medical student to general surgical resident (GSR) is one of the most formative times in a young surgeon's professional career. The purpose of this study is to determine how a cohort of aspiring surgical residents define resilience., Design: This is a qualitative study where interviews were conducted prospective GSRs over 2 application seasons. During the institution's standard interview process, applicants were asked to provide a definition of resilience. Responses were documented. Qualitative content analysis was conducted by the research team. Initial codes were developed and defined. Research team members independently coded the responses, and then an iterative group consensus process was used to develop the final themes., Setting: This study was conducted at Geisinger Medical Center, an academic tertiary care hospital in Danville, PA with 5 categorical GSR positions per year., Participants: All applicants who underwent an in-person interview were included in this study., Results: A total of 261 comments about resilience were available from 117 interviews. These responses were categorized into 5 themes: support, learning from failure, adaptability, self-reflection, and perseverance., Conclusion: Resilience as defined by applicants to a general surgery residency program is a multifaceted term. The thematic categories suggest that resilience can be viewed through the framework of the 5 components of emotional intelligence: self-aware, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills., (Copyright © 2020 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)