Residents, Responsibility, and Error: How Residents Learn to Navigate the Intersection.

Teaching residents to avoid making errors is important, but it cannot replace the critical task of supporting them both clinically and emotionally when errors inevitably occur. A better understanding of how residents learn to manage and become responsible for medical error exposes the need for formal training as well as timely, explicit discussion and emotional support both during and after the event. As in clinical management, graded independence in error management is important and should not be avoided because of faculty discomfort.