Closing the Gap in Ostomy Care: A Structured Curriculum Improves General Surgery Resident Competence in Preoperative Stoma Site Marking.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate whether a structured, simulation-based multidisciplinary teaching session could improve general surgery resident self-reported confidence and knowledge in preoperative stoma site marking.

DESIGN

Prospective pilot quality improvement initiative using a pre-/postintervention design. Resident confidence and knowledge were assessed immediately before and after the intervention using an investigator-developed 10-item instrument scored on a 5-point Likert scale (maximum composite score 50). Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for comparison.

SETTING

Community-based general surgery residency program at a single institution in California.

PARTICIPANTS

Twelve categorical general surgery residents (PGY1-PGY4) who voluntarily participated and completed both assessments.

RESULTS

All 12 residents demonstrated improvement in composite score following the intervention. Median composite score increased from 27 to 48 out of 50. The improvement was statistically significant (Z = -3.07, p = 0.002). The minimum postintervention score across all items and participants was 4, indicating every resident achieved at least a "Confident" rating following the session.

CONCLUSIONS

A single, brief, multidisciplinary teaching session incorporating didactic instruction and simulation-based practice significantly improved resident confidence and knowledge in preoperative stoma site marking. Formal incorporation of this curriculum into general surgery residency training represents a practical, low-resource intervention with potential to reduce stoma-related complications and standardize care in settings where Wound, Ostomy, and Continence nurse (WOCN) expertise is unavailable.