Factors affecting workflow in robot-assisted surgery: a scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Robot-assisted surgery is expanding worldwide. Most research in this field concentrates on surgeons' technical skills and patient outcome, but research from open and laparoscopic surgery shows that teamwork is crucial for patient safety. Team composition is changed in robot-assisted surgery with the surgeon placed away from the bedside, potentially altering teamwork and workflow in the operating theatre. This scoping review aimed to explore how factors affecting workflow as well as team members' social and cognitive skills during robot-assisted surgery are reported in the literature. METHODS: A systematic search was performed in the databases Medline, EMBASE, PsycINFO, and Web of Science. Reports were screened according to the Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis for Scoping Review guidelines. Inclusion criteria were robot-assisted surgery, multi-professional teams, and workflow, flow disruptions, or non-technical skills. RESULTS: A total of 12,527 references were screened, and 24 articles were included in the review. Articles were heterogeneous in terms of aim, methods and focus. The studies concentrated on two main fields: flow disruptions and the categorization of their causes and incidences; and non-technical skills describing the challenges of communication and effects on situation awareness. CONCLUSION: Many studies focused on flow disruptions and found that communication, coordination, training, and equipment/technology were the most frequent causes. Another focus of studies was non-technical skills-primarily communication and situation awareness. Future studies could focus on how to prevent the most harmful flow disruptions and develop interventions for improving workflow.

Take-home training in a simulation-based laparoscopy course.

BACKGROUND: Simulation training can prepare trainees for clinical practice in laparoscopic surgery. Training on box trainers allows for simulation training at home, which studies have shown to be a feasible method of training. However, little research has been conducted into how to make it a more efficient method of training. Our aim was to investigate how box trainers are used in take-home training to help guide the design of take-home training courses. METHODS: This study was designed using a mixed methods approach. Junior doctors participating in a laparoscopy curriculum, which included practising at home on box trainers, were invited. Quantitative data on training patterns was collected from logbooks. Qualitative data on the use of box trainers was retrieved from focus groups and individual interviews. RESULTS: From logbooks, we found that 14 out of 18 junior doctors mixed their training modalities, and four practised first on box trainers then on virtual reality simulators. Twelve practised only at home, while five practised at both places and one practised solely at the simulation centre. After a delayed start, most practised for some time, then had a period without training and then started training again towards the end of the course. We found that the themes of the interviews were: training method, training pattern, feedback and self-regulation. Participants identified the lack of feedback as challenging but described how self-rating provided direction during unsupervised training. Mandatory training elements affected when and how much participants practised. CONCLUSIONS: When participants practised at home, they took an individualised approach to training. They mixed their training at home with training at the simulation centre. Participants practised at the beginning and towards the end of the course. Self-rating helped to guide unsupervised training where feedback was not accessible. Curricular requirements and testing determined when and how much participants practised.

Non-technical skills in minimally invasive surgery teams: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Root cause analyses show that up to 70 % of adverse events are caused by human error. Strong non-technical skills (NTS) can prevent or reduce these errors, considerable numbers of which occur in the operating theatre. Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) requires manipulation of more complex equipment than open procedures, likely requiring a different set of NTS for each kind of team. The aims of this study were to identify the MIS teams' key NTS and investigate the effect of training and assessment of NTS on MIS teams. METHODS: The databases of PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, PsycINFO, and Scopus were systematically searched according to Preferred Reporting Item for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Articles containing outcome measures related to MIS teams' key NTS, training, or assessment of NTS were included. RESULTS: The search yielded 1984 articles, 11 of which were included. All were observational studies without blinding, and they differed in aims, types of evaluation, and outcomes. Only two studies evaluated patient outcomes other than operative time, and overall, the studies' quality of evidence was low. Different communication types were encountered in MIS compared to open surgery, mainly due to equipment- and patient-related challenges. Fixed teams improved teamwork and safety levels, while deficient planning and poor teamwork were found to obstruct workflow and increase errors. Training NTS mitigates these issues and improves staff attitudes towards NTS. CONCLUSIONS: MIS teams' NTS are important for workflow and prevention of errors and can be enhanced by working in fixed teams. In the technological complex sphere of MIS, communication revolves around equipment- and patient-related topics, much more so than in open surgery. In all, only a few heterogeneous-design studies have examined this. In the future, the focus should shift to systematically identifying key NTS and developing effective, evidence-based team training programmes in MIS.

Using a Structured Assessment Tool to Evaluate Nontechnical Skills of Nurse Anesthetists.

Nontechnical skills are critical for good anesthetic practice but are seldom addressed explicitly in clinical training. The purposes of this study were (1) to evaluate the reliability and validity of the observation-based assessment tool Nurse Anaesthetists' Non-Technical Skills system (N-ANTS) and (2) to evaluate the effect of training nurse anesthetist supervisors in the use of N-ANTS. This system comprises a global rating score, 4 categories, and 15 elements to rate nurse anesthetists' nontechnical skills. A 1-day workshop was conducted for 22 nurse anesthetist supervisors to rate nurse anesthetists' nontechnical skills in 9 scripted video scenarios. Data were gathered from 2 rating sessions separated by a 2-hour training session. The interrater reliability was high before and after the training. It remained stable for the global rating score in N-ANTS and its category ratings, but improved at the elements level. When the raters' ratings were compared with ratings by an expert reference group, there was no statistically significant effect on training. We conclude that Danish nurse anesthetist supervisors without further rater training besides their work experience can use N-ANTS to assess nontechnical skills of nurse anesthetists.

Investigating novice doctors' reflections in debriefings after simulation scenarios.

BACKGROUND: Debriefing is pivotal to the simulation learning process, and the reflection that it aims to foster is fundamental in experiential learning. Despite its importance, essential aspects of debriefing remain unclear. STUDY OBJECTIVE: To investigate reflection in debriefings by assessing participants' reflection levels in discussions of leader/follower-ship or role distribution and compare occurrences of high reflection with those of lower reflection. METHODS: The data consisted of videos from 38 debriefings with 10 debriefers from the Danish Institute of Medical Simulation. An adapted framework of reflection levels was used for the analysis. A comparison was made between debriefers' utterances across occurrences of higher and lower reflection. RESULTS: Participants reached only lower reflection levels. Of five reflection levels, the second was reached the most frequently and the third was the highest reached. No salient differences were found in debriefers' utterances across occurrences of higher and lower reflection. CONCLUSION: Participants' reflection levels were low in this cohort of novice doctors training leadership skills in acute situations. However, the desired reflection should be appropriated to the given context. The rating of reflection levels is a promising approach to analyze reflection in conversation in experience-based learning situations.

A feeling of flow: exploring junior scientists' experiences with dictation of scientific articles.

BACKGROUND: Science involves publishing results, but many scientists do not master this. We introduced dictation as a method of producing a manuscript draft, participating in writing teams and attending a writing retreat to junior scientists in our department. This study aimed to explore the scientists' experiences with this process. METHODS: Four focus group interviews were conducted and comprised all participating scientists (n = 14). Each transcript was transcribed verbatim and coded independently by two interviewers. The coding structure was discussed until consensus and from this the emergent themes were identified. RESULTS: Participants were 7 PhD students, 5 scholarship students and 2 clinical research nurses. Three main themes were identified: 'Preparing and then letting go' indicated that dictating worked best when properly prepared. 'The big dictation machine' described benefits of writing teams when junior scientists got feedback on both content and structure of their papers. 'Barriers to and drivers for participation' described flow-like states that participants experienced during the dictation. CONCLUSIONS: Motivation and a high level of preparation were pivotal to be able to dictate a full article in one day. The descriptions of flow-like states seemed analogous to the theoretical model of flow which is interesting, as flow is usually deemed a state reserved to skilled experts. Our findings suggest that other academic groups might benefit from using the concept including dictation of manuscripts to encourage participants' confidence in their writing skills.

Okay, let's talk - short debriefings in the operating room.

INTRODUCTION: Debriefing is increasingly used to enhance learning and reflection in clinical practice. Nevertheless, barriers to implementing debriefings in the operating room (OR) include lack of time, the availability of trained facilitators, and difficulty gathering the full team after surgery. Spending five minutes on a debriefing during skin closure or between procedures may enhance learning and reflection on practice, generating to improve patient safety. The aim of this study was to explore characteristics, feasibility and content of short debriefings in the OR. METHODS: This was a mixed-method study of short debriefings, analyzing audio-recordings, field notes and relevance ratings from multi-professional teams, that conducted short debriefings in the OR at two University Hospitals in Denmark. RESULTS: A total of 135 debriefings were conducted, with a median duration of five minutes (range 1:19 min-12:05 min). A total of 477 team members participated in the debriefings. The teams' median rating of relevance was 6 (range 1-10). The rating was higher following challenging events and in debriefings where the surgeon actively participated in the conversation. The teams discussed non-technical skills in all the debriefings and verbalized reflections on practice in 75 percent of the debriefings. CONCLUSION: It was feasible to conduct short debriefings in a production-focused, complex work environment. In all the debriefings, the teams discussed various non-technical skills (NTS) and reflected on practice. The majority of team members rated the debriefings as relevant for their task management.

Exploring Shared Mental Models of Surgical Teams in Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery Lobectomy.

BACKGROUND: Nontechnical skills are important for safe and efficient surgery. Teams performing video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy express that it is of utmost importance to have a shared mental model (SMM) of the patient, current situation, and team resources. However, these SMMs have never been explored in a clinical setting. The aim of this observational study was to measure the similarity of SMMs within teams performing VATS lobectomy. METHODS: In this national, multicenter study, SMMs of teams performing VATS lobectomy (n = 64) were measured by preoperative and postoperative questionnaires that were completed by all team members (n = 172). Participants' responses were compared within each team to explore SMMs of risk assessment, familiarity, technical skills, nontechnical skills, and problems. RESULTS: Analysis showed poor agreement between team members with respect to risk assessment, but higher levels of agreement were found for assessments of familiarity, technical skills, and nontechnical skills within the team (Cronbach's alpha = 0.90), most notably for surgical subteams (ie, surgeon plus assistant surgeon plus surgical nurses). During the surgical procedure, the most frequent problems were related to anesthesia, and these were most often recognized by the surgeons. The operating room nurses were the least aware of each other's and the surgeons' problems. CONCLUSIONS: Significant variation exists in the SMMs among VATS team members, with poor agreement regarding the patient and current situation, but better agreement with respect to team resources. Focus on preoperative and perioperative team reflexivity, in addition to explicit communication within unfamiliar teams, may provide opportunities to enhance SMMs, with possible downstream effects on team performance.

Adaptation of a tool to assess non-technical skills of scrub practitioners in Denmark.

The aim of this study was to adapt the Scottish tool, Scrub Practitioners List of Intraoperative Non-Technical Skills, to Danish organisation and culture. With an explorative and qualitative approach, four group interviews with scrub practitioners, surgeons and anaesthesia staff were conducted. The main differences found were related to communication and teamwork regarding scrub practitioners focus on the team and speaking up. Differences in the non-technical skills described in the behavioural markers are perhaps explained by cultural differences between Scotland and Denmark. A new tool for scrub practitioners in Denmark was adapted.

Important Non-Technical Skills in Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery Lobectomy: Team Perspectives.

BACKGROUND: Safety in the operating room is dependent on the team's non-technical skills. The importance of non-technical skills appears to be different for minimally invasive surgery as compared with open surgery. The aim of this study was to identify which non-technical skills are perceived by team members to be most important for patient safety, in the setting of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy. METHODS: This was an explorative, semistructured interview-based study with 21 participants from all four thoracic surgery centers in Denmark that perform VATS lobectomy. Data analysis was deductive, and directed content analysis was used to code the text into the Oxford Non-Technical Skills system for evaluating operating teams' non-technical skills. RESULTS: The most important non-technical skills described by the VATS teams were planning and preparation, situation awareness, problem solving, leadership, risk assessment, and teamwork. These non-technical skills enabled the team to achieve shared mental models, which in turn facilitated their efforts to anticipate next steps. This was viewed as important by the participants as they saw VATS lobectomy as a high-risk procedure with complementary and overlapping scopes of practice between surgical and anesthesia subteams. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified six non-technical skills that serve as the foundation for shared mental models of the patient, the current situation, and team resources. These findings contribute three important additions to the shared mental model construct: planning and preparation, risk assessment, and leadership. Shared mental models are crucial for patient safety because they enable VATS teams to anticipate problems through adaptive patterns of both implicit and explicit coordination.

Comprehensive feedback on trainee surgeons' non-technical skills.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the content of conversations, feedback style, and perceived usefulness of feedback to trainee surgeons when conversations were stimulated by a tool for assessing surgeons' non-technical skills. METHODS: Trainee surgeons and their supervisors used the Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons in Denmark tool to stimulate feedback conversations. Audio recordings of post-operation feedback conversations were collected. Trainees and supervisors provided questionnaire responses on the usefulness and comprehensiveness of the feedback. The feedback conversations were qualitatively analyzed for content and feedback style. Usefulness was investigated using a scale from 1 to 5 and written comments were qualitatively analyzed. RESULTS: Six trainees and six supervisors participated in eight feedback conversations. Eighty questionnaires (response rate 83 percent) were collected from 13 trainees and 12 supervisors. Conversations lasted median eight (2-15) minutes. Supervisors used the elements and categories in the tool to structure the content of the conversations. Supervisors tended to talk about the trainees' actions and their own frames rather than attempting to understand the trainees' perceptions. Supervisors and trainees welcomed the feedback opportunity and agreed that the conversations were useful and comprehensive. CONCLUSIONS: The content of the feedback conversations reflected the contents of the tool and the feedback was considered useful and comprehensive. However, supervisors talked primarily about their own frames, so in order for the feedback to reach its full potential, supervisors may benefit from training techniques to stimulate a deeper reflection among trainees.

Customisation of an instrument to assess anaesthesiologists' non-technical skills.

OBJECTIVE: The objectives of the study were to identify Danish anaesthesiologists' non-technical skills and to customise the Scottish-developed Anaesthetists' Non-Technical Skills instrument for Danish anaesthesiologists. METHODS: Six semi-structured group interviews were conducted with 31 operating room team members: anaes-thesiologists, nurse anaesthetists, surgeons, and scrub nurses. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using directed content analysis. Anaesthesiologists' non-technical skills were identified, coded, and sorted using the original instrument as a basis. The resulting prototype instrument was discussed with anaesthesiologists from 17 centres to ensure face validity. RESULTS: Interviews lasted 46-67 minutes. Identified examples of anaesthesiologists' good or poor non-technical skills fit the four categories in the original instrument: situation awareness; decision making; team working; and task management. Anaesthesiologists' leadership role in the operating room was emphasised: the original 'Task Management' category was named 'Leadership'. One new element, 'Demonstrating self-awareness' was added under the category 'Situation Awareness'. Compared with the original instrument, half of the behavioural markers were new, which reflected that being aware of and communicating one's own abilities to the team; working systematically; and speaking up to avoid adverse events were important skills. CONCLUSIONS: The Anaesthetists' Non-Technical Skills instrument was customised to a Danish setting using the identified non-technical skills for anaesthesiologists and the original instrument as basis. The customised instrument comprises four categories and 16 underpinning elements supported by multiple behavioural markers. Identifying non-technical skills through semi-structured group interviews and analysing them using direct content analysis proved a useful method for customising an assessment instrument to another setting.

Assessing trainee surgeons' nontechnical skills: five cases are sufficient for reliable assessments.

BACKGROUND: Trainee surgeons would benefit from regular, formative assessments to ensure they learn the nontechnical aspects of surgical performance. Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons in Denmark (NOTSSdk) is a tool to assess surgeons' nontechnical skills (NTS) during an operation. The aims of this study were to explore which parts of NOTSSdk supervisors use to assess trainee surgeons' NTS, to determine the internal consistency reliability of NOTSSdk, and to estimate how many operations were needed to obtain reliable ratings of a trainee surgeon's NTS. METHODS: A total of 12 supervisors from 2 hospitals assessed 13 trainees in 48 procedures including laparoscopic cholecystectomies, inguinal hernia repairs, and laparoscopic appendectomies. RESULTS: NOTSSdk showed good internal consistency reliability (R(2) = 0.95). Supervisors used both categories and elements of the tool to provide assessments, although 2 elements of leadership ("supporting others" and "coping with pressure") were considered irrelevant in 27% to 31% of the cases. Assessments of 5 procedures were sufficient to gain reliable ratings (Generalizability coefficient > 0.80) of a trainee surgeon's NTS. CONCLUSION: As supervisors used the full tool, the internal consistency reliability was high and assessment of 5 procedures could be achieved in clinical practice, we suggest that NOTSSdk could be implemented as a formative assessment tool to facilitate the training of surgeons' NTS.

[Experience with the training of non-technical skills on a course for surgical trainees]. / Erfaringer med at træne ikketekniske færdigheder på et kirurgisk kursus.

This paper describes the introduction of the training of non-technical skills on a mandatory course for surgical trainees. The training consisted of an introduction to non-technical skills in a plenum session and was followed by a full-scale simulation with debriefing in which participants reflected on their actions. Evaluations showed that > 90% of the participants found that the subject was relevant for their further training and some requested more simulation training. The course hereby addresses several of the Danish seven roles of a fully trained specialist doctor.

[Training of health-care employees in crisis resource management]. / Koncept og træning af sundhedsfagligt personale i crisis resource management.

Studies show that human errors contribute to up to 70% of mistakes and mishaps in health care. Crisis resource management, CRM, is a conceptual framework for analysing and training individual and team skills in order to prevent and manage errors. Different CRM training methods, e.g. simulation, are in use and the literature emphasises the need of training the full team or organisation for maximal effect. CRM training has an effect on skill improvement, but few studies have shown an effect on patient outcome. However, these studies show great variability of quality.

Reliable assessment of general surgeons' non-technical skills based on video-recordings of patient simulated scenarios.

BACKGROUND: Nontechnical skills are essential for safe and efficient surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of an assessment tool for surgeons' nontechnical skills, Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons dk (NOTSSdk), and the effect of rater training. METHODS: A 1-day course was conducted for 15 general surgeons in which they rated surgeons' nontechnical skills in 9 video recordings of scenarios simulating real intraoperative situations. Data were gathered from 2 sessions separated by a 4-hour training session. RESULTS: Interrater reliability was high for both pretraining ratings (Cronbach's α = .97) and posttraining ratings (Cronbach's α = .98). There was no statistically significant development in assessment skills. The D study showed that 2 untrained raters or 1 trained rater was needed to obtain generalizability coefficients >.80. CONCLUSIONS: The high pretraining interrater reliability indicates that videos were easy to rate and Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons dk easy to use. This implies that Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons dk (NOTSSdk) could be an important tool in surgical training, potentially improving safety and quality for surgical patients.

[Use of focus group interviews in health science]. / Anvendelse af fokusgruppeinterview inden for sundhedsvidenskab.

The focus group interview is a method for examining issues close to the informants' everyday lives. The focus group interview complements and explains results based on quantitative research. However, it may be first choice of method before entering into a quantitative design when faced with relatively unexplored problems. The role as interviewer is central and benefits from knowledge and experience with design, methods, and analysis of qualitative data. The implications of using the focus group interview in terms of validity, generalisability and reliability is discussed.

Customization of a tool to assess Danish surgeons´ non-technical skills in the operating room.

INTRODUCTION: Errors in surgery often stem from failure related to non-technical skills such as communication and teamwork. Tools for training and assessment of non-technical skills are needed to ensure safe surgery. The aim of this study was to customize the Non-Technical Skills for Surgeons (NOTSS) rating system for Danish general surgeons. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Eight group interviews were conducted at two hospitals with consultant general surgeons, trainee surgeons, scrub nurses and anaesthesia staff (n = 72). Interviews were transcribed and analysed by two coders identifying surgeons´ non-technical skills. Skills were sorted according to NOTSS and behavioural examples were written. The prototype of NOTSSdk was discussed with a panel of surgeons (n = 12) to ensure face validity. RESULTS: The skills identified in a Danish context fitted NOTSS's four categories: situation awareness, decision making, leadership, communication and teamwork and the 12 underlying elements. Only one element was added to the NOTSSdk; "monitoring own performance." A total of 3-8 good and 3-6 poor behavioural examples were written for each element. Respecting team members, creating a good working atmosphere and discussing options in the surgical team were distinct themes. DISCUSSION: The tool, which was customized for Danish surgeons, comprises four categories, 13 elements and numerous behavioural examples. The distinct themes regarding respect, discussing options and creating a good working atmosphere are more prominent than in the Scottish NOTSS, which may be explained by cultural differences or the fact that the present study included the perspectives of the entire surgical team. CONCLUSION: NOTSSdk holds potential as a tool for the guiding of assessment and feedback on surgeons´ non-technical performance. FUNDING: not relevant. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered with clinicaltrials.gov (NCT01334411).

[An unusual case of a screwdriver found in rectum]. / En usædvanlig historie om en skruetrækker i rectum.

The presence of foreign bodies in the rectum is not an entirely rare cause for patients to seek hospital if the foreign body is stuck. Complications are rare (< 1%) but potentially severe, since intraabdominal perforations can occur. We report a case of a 58 year-old male presenting with an abscess in the left gluteal region caused by a perforating screwdriver in the rectosigmoideum. The screwdriver was removed during a laparotomy and he got a temporary stoma but made complete recovery, and a stoma reversal was planned. The risk of insufficient patient counselling due to taboos is discussed.