International Journal of

Radiation Oncology biology

physics

www.redjournal.org

BRIEF REPORT AND OPINION

Is Financial Literacy Necessary for Radiation Oncology Residents? Matthew Witek, MD,* Joshua Siglin, MD,* Theresa Malatesta,* Adam Snook, PhD,y Eric Gressen, MD,* Shari Rudoler, MD,* Voichita Bar-Ad, MD,* and Scot Fisher, DO* *Department of Radiation Oncology, Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and yDepartment of Clinical Pharmacology and Experimental Theurapeutics, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Received Jul 29, 2014, and in revised form Aug 5, 2014. Accepted for publication Aug 11, 2014.

Professionalism, one of the 6 core competencies according to the 2012 “The Next GME Accreditation Systemd Rationale and Benefits,” was conceptualized to encompass integrity, respect for others, accountability to society, and the medical profession (1). Despite literature on how to enhance the other competencies, there are no published directives on improving professionalism (2-4). This is not unexpected, as a recent study of pediatric residents demonstrated high variability in their understanding of professionalism, which was frequently at variance with the corresponding Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) competency definition (5). Residents graduate with more debt, while reimbursement for professional services is declining. Under these circumstances, we believe that financial literacy training including such topics as basic financial principles, income allocation, contract negotiation, insurance requirements, debt management, practice management, and business development will enable graduating residents to be more accountable to society and to the profession. Given the paucity of data regarding the financial literacy of radiation oncology residents, we designed a survey to assess the current level of resident training, perceived readiness to handle future personal and professional financial decisions, and limitations to providing financial education.

The residents’ and program directors’ surveys consisted of 9 and 7 questions, respectively (Tables S1 and S2). Anonymous, voluntary, and nonincentivized surveys were disseminated via Surveymonkey, Inc (Palo Alto, CA). Of the residents, 23% (nZ60) responded to the survey (postgraduate year [PGY] 2 Z 15%, PGY3 Z 18.3%, PGY4 Z 26.7%, and PGY5 Z 40%). In total, 36.7% of residents received lectures, with the majority being senior residents (11.1% of PGY2, 45.4% of PGY3, 31.3% of PGY4, and 45.8% of PGY5). The most common duration of lecture was 1 to 3 hours per year. Financial advisors (68%) and/or radiation oncology physicians (45%) provided the lectures. Approximately 75% of residents reported being unprepared to handle future financial decisions. There was a significant correlation between financial preparedness with increasing PGY of training (PZ.05, R2 Z 0.90). Importantly, the presence or absence of training significantly impacted whether or not radiation oncology residents felt prepared to handle future financial decisions (P

Is financial literacy necessary for radiation oncology residents?

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