Page 7 - Portuguese Journal - SPORL - Vol 61. Nº2

Tracheostomy: evaluation of the medical
resident’s knowledge
Original Article
Authors
Diogo Cunha-Cabral
Serviço de Otorrinolaringologia, Unidade Local de
Saúde de Matosinhos – Hospital Pedro Hispano,
Portugal
André Alves Carção
Serviço de Otorrinolaringologia, Unidade Local de
Saúde de Matosinhos – Hospital Pedro Hispano,
Portugal
Pedro Marques Gomes
Serviço de Otorrinolaringologia, Unidade Local de
Saúde de Matosinhos – Hospital Pedro Hispano,
Portugal
Delfim Duarte
Serviço de Otorrinolaringologia, Unidade Local de
Saúde de Matosinhos – Hospital Pedro Hispano,
Portugal
José Ferreira Penêda
Serviço de Otorrinolaringologia, Unidade Local de
Saúde de Matosinhos – Hospital Pedro Hispano,
Portugal
Correspondence:
Diogo Cunha-Cabral, M.D., MSc.,
Serviço de Otorrinolaringologia
Hospital Pedro Hispano, Unidade Local de Saúde de
Matosinhos
Rua Dr. Eduardo Torres, 4464-513 Matosinhos, Portugal
Contacto telefónico: +351 229 391 000
E-mail: diogo.cabral08@outlook.com
dcabral@med.up.pt
Article received on November 12, 2022.
Accepted for publication on February 12, 2023.
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the medical residents’
knowledge of tracheostomy.
Materials and Methods: We administered a
questionnaire to medical residents to collect
information about their training in tracheostomy
during the medical course and contact with
tracheostomized patients during internship
(“Internato de Formação Geral” - IFG). Knowledge
about tracheostomy was evaluated through eight
multiple-choice questions.
Results: We obtained answers from 132
participants, of which 74.2% responded that they
had not received training in tracheostomy during
the medical course and 49.2% reported having had
contact with patients with a tracheostomy during
IFG. The mean number of correct answers was 4.60
(standard deviation [SD]=1.283). Previous training
and contact with tracheostomized patients during
IFG were not significantly associated with a higher
mean number of correct answers (p= 0.777 and
p=0.218, respectively).
Conclusions: Undergraduate medical education
may have shortcomings regarding tracheostomy
training, due to which newly qualified doctors
have insufficient knowledge about this topic.
Keywords: Otorhinolaryngology, Medical Education,
Tracheostomy
Introduction
Tracheostomy is one of the oldest procedures
in the history of Medicine . Although it was
1
traditionally associated with the specialty
of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck
Surgery, the advent and spread of percutaneous
tracheostomy (PT) as an alternative to surgical
tracheostomy (ST) has led to a widening of
the spectrum of specialists who perform this
procedure and, consequently, provide care to
2, 3
patients with a tracheostomy .
Before the SARS-CoV2 pandemic, there
was already a clear trend of an increase in
the number of tracheostomies performed
worldwide, mainly PT . During the pandemic,
3-5
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