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Table 5 Text condensates for subgroups within the theme ‘Transfer opportunities’

From: Ticket to perform: an explorative study of trainees’ engagement in and transfer of surgical training

Subgroup

Text condensate

Creating opportunities

In the clinic, it is necessary to reach out. I always go through the programs to see if there are any procedures I can attend. I have pointed out to my supervisors that there are some procedures that I have to attend to get my training approved. I have become better at squeezing in and saying, ‘I want to suture’ or ‘I want to place the trocars.’ I do not control which and how many procedures I get to attend, but I try to influence what I am allowed to do when attending. You have to be skilled. You have to make yourself visible in everything you do. And you have to show them that you really want it. Otherwise, you will not get it. I have heard many times that ‘education is something you take. It is not something you get’. That is the training culture we have been taught

Constructed from 5 different informants’ expressions

Relations

It is crucial who my supervisor is. Depending on whom I ask, I am sometimes allowed to perform, and sometimes I have to wait. It depends on their mood and whether our expectations are aligned. If the supervisor is stressed and impatient, he will quickly take over. It is difficult to navigate, but of course, you start to know the supervisors. I ask my peers, ‘How do you approach X?’ and ‘How do you get the opportunity to perform?’ A good supervisor is someone who does not intervene too soon and who gives hints rather than instructions. I prefer having a supervisor who I know and who has confidence in me. That way, I feel secure with the person. A new supervisor needs to know ​​who I am and what I can do. In the clinical setting, it does not matter if I pass the course with two A’s. What counts is how well-liked I am as a colleague, how strong I am in my theoretical knowledge, and how many procedures I have performed

Constructed from 8 different informants’ expressions

Training as

‘Entry ticket’

The training program provides a safe learning environment where I can train the things that I need to master before performing something more complex in the OR. The program provides me with the argument that ‘I have been training—I know how to do it, and I want to do it.’ Having received a certificate stating that I have obtained the basic skills level, I can say, ‘I have been on this course, and now I want to use my hands’. It is an entry ticket to the fun stuff. I use it as an argument to be allowed to do more things in the OR. I say, ‘by the way, I attended this training program 14 days ago’. Then they know that I have invested my time in training and that I really want it. It gives me a better chance for opportunities to perform in the OR

Constructed from 5 different informants’ expressions

Work planning

None of my colleagues knows that I have been attending the training program, apart from maybe the work scheduler and chief physician, who have approved my leave of absence. It is not taken into account in the work planning in any way—that I should be prioritised for attending in the OR after the training program. Nothing changes in what I am doing in the clinic when I return from a training program. It is difficult because we are many trainees competing for few procedures. Everyone wants to be scheduled for the OR, but there are always changes to the plan. One sick leave, and then you are back in the outpatient clinic or doing rounds again. It is a bit absurd and somewhat inopportune. I wish the training was structured more in blocks. I guess no one thinks it is a bad idea, but it is difficult to turn into reality—they say

Constructed from 5 different informants’ expressions