The Environmental and Human Health Impact of Virtual General Surgery Residency Interviews With an In-Person Second Look.

Purpose: Health care contributes to climate change through several mechanisms, including potentially avoidable travel. A major change in academic medicine during the COVID-19 pandemic was the transition to virtual interviews and resultant reduced environmental impact. However, as travel restrictions have lifted, programs have explored interview styles incorporating both virtual and in-person aspects. This study estimated the net carbon emissions from a single general surgery residency program that offered virtual interviews paired with an optional in-person second-look event and quantified the potential human health impact of this hybrid interview model compared with the in-person interview model.

Method: This cross-sectional study of the 2022 to 2023 application cycle for Rush University Medical Center's general surgery residency program invited all interviewed applicants to participate in an optional second look. Interviewees' travel distance and most likely mode of transportation were estimated using the address provided in their application. Environmental impact was measured as metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (MTCO2e) and human health impact as disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs).

Results: Thirty-one of 111 interviewed applicants (27.9%) attended an in-person second look. Travel for the second look generated an estimated 6.79 MTCO2e (95% CI, 4.06-9.52 MTCO2e). This program avoided an estimated 27.61 MTCO2e and saved 2.8923 DALYs during 1 interview cycle.

Conclusions: If the emissions avoided at a single program through a hybrid interview style are extrapolated to all U.S. general surgery residency programs, a hybrid interview style potentially reduces emissions by 5,001 MTCO2e annually, the equivalent of removing nearly 1,200 passenger vehicles from the road for a year, and saves more than 500 years of full health each interview cycle. This hybrid interview model reduces health care's contribution to climate change and the associated negative effects on public health while still allowing candidates critical in-person interaction.