Perceptions of students on surgical placement programs and their association with academic and clinical competencies: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background The need and implementation of surgical placement program in promoting the clinical and academic competencies of medical students is essential. This study evaluated the students perception on surgical placements and their relationship to academic performance and the environment of the institution. Methods A cross-sectional survey was carried out between 2018 to 2019 on 500 medical students of whom 96% responded to the survey and were on Surgery III rotation in Al-Noor Specialist Hospital and King Abdulaziz Hospital in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. A validated questionnaire with 27 items, administered in paper format at each block, rated the domains of clinical skills, knowledge, teamwork, communication, ethics, and mentorship with five points Likert scale. Descriptive and non-parametric analyses were conducted the significance was established as p 0.05). Those factors that predicted a better global satisfaction were have better clinical skills ( p = 0.022), knowledge ( p = 0.007), communication ( p = 0.044), and positive night-call experiences (p = 0.047). Conclusion Organized mentorship, supervision and clinical exposure improve the level of satisfaction and competency among students during surgical placements. The standardized and supportive learning environments should be applied in the hospitals due to the institutional differences.