Introduction: Burnout is a pervasive issue in healthcare, with urology trainees reporting burnout rates as high as 63.8%. Resilience training is a proven tool to prevent burnout and improve performance in high stress working environments, with demonstrated efficacy in surgical residency programs. Enhanced Stress Resilience Training (ESRT) is a mindfulness-based cognitive skills training developed and validated by Dr. Carter Lebares and the UCSF Center for Mindfulness in Surgery. ESRT offers tools to reframe thoughts and promote emotional regulation. The primary goal of this study is to assess feasibility and to introduce a curriculum to expand a pre-existing program focused on wellness and individual skill development. Methods: Through consultation with Dr. Lebares, we customized course structure to include a didactics presentation and five ESRT sessions taught over Zoom by a certified ESRT instructor, a retired surgeon. We conducted the sessions in place of standard departmental conferences to mitigate personal time used for the training. Baseline descriptive pre and post course data was collected using validated surveys, including the Mental Health Continuum Short Form, Physician Wellbeing Index, and the Connor Davidson Resilience Index, with a subsequent focus group to gain qualitative data on overall course perception. Using two-sample t-tests, we compared differences between and pre and post course responses. Results: There were 33 participants in the course, with 20 residents, 7 faculty, and 6 others (student/APP). Surveys were completed by 30 participants pre course and 15 participants post course, with 15 sets of paired data. There were no statistically significant differences in self-reported wellbeing or stress response after course participation; however, participants were significantly more likely to use meditation as a stress coping mechanism after the course (p=0.008). Qualitative descriptive results demonstrated a 15% increase in participants’ understanding of the impact mindfulness practices have on work performance. Conclusions: Our program successfully implemented ESRT via a novel remote delivery format. Although our analysis was limited by small sample size, our pilot study highlights feasibility in implementation. This curriculum also showed resident skill development in stress regulation through mindfulness practices. Next steps would include repeat delivery within the program to promote durability, and possible expansion beyond our single program. SOURCE OF Funding: Norton Rose Fulbright Educational Grant
