Verbal feedback from senior surgeons represents an essential part of surgical training. As an organizational psychologist who has spent time observing and measuring communication in the operating room (OR), I have observed a great deal of feedback from surgeons to surgical residents, students or more junior team members; most were constructive and expressed respectfully. However, in some cases, I observed feedback that seemed unsupportive and challenging to interpret, such as: “No, no, you should do this like this and not like this [showing how to handle an instrument], as I already told you twice. You are still working like an intern.”

“Stop!” the attending blurts out as the trainee was about to make a miscalculated maneuver with her surgical instrument. The resident’s stomach flips as she realizes her potential error and readjusts. The attending, likewise, breathes a sigh of relief as the surgery is turned back on course.

As medical educators, we have all experienced high stakes moments like this one. But what is the best way to debrief this encounter? And how do we turn the “fight or flight” inducing stomach-churn into an educational opportunity? Sure, we can give feedback, and we should. However, to the learner, this experience may feel like a “mini-fail” and lead to feelings of guilt or shame, and possibly avoidance of similarly challenging scenarios in the future. Can we redirect a trainee’s learning trajectory just as we redirected the surgery? I think we can, with a secret ingredient called “growth mindset.”

I remember being a first-year physician in training, picking up the phone, and calling consults. I remember calling consults even if I found I did not always understand the question we had for our consultants. It bothered me at the time, but I was so busy, and asking why sometimes seemed like more energy than I could muster.

Think of a time when you were a member of an effective team (that was diverse or geographically dispersed. Why was it effective? How did this make you feel as a team member?

The Harvard Macy Institute Podcast aims to connect our Harvard Macy Institute community and to develop our interest in health professions education topics and literature. Our podcast is hosted by our Program for Educators in the Health Professions course faculty Victoria Brazil, and will feature interviews with health professions education authors and their research papers.

Podcast #2 explores Leadership development for health professionals with Cathy Green and Grant Phelps in preparation for the Monash Institute for Health and Clinical Education (MIHCE) Leadership and Innovations course.