Exploring training needs of newly graduated medical doctors to inform the undergraduate simulation-based curriculum: a national Delphi consensus study.

PURPOSE: Mastering technical procedures is a key component in succeeding as a newly graduated medical doctor and is of critical importance to ensure patient safety. The efficacy of simulation-based education has been demonstrated but medical schools have different requirements for undergraduate curricula. We aimed to identify and prioritize the technical procedures needed by newly graduated medical doctors. METHODS: We conducted a national needs assessment survey using the Delphi technique to gather consensus from key opinion leaders in the field. In the first round, a brainstorm was conducted to identify all potential technical procedures. In the second round, respondents rated the need for simulation-based training of each procedure using the Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation Needs Assessment Formula (CAMES-NAF). The third round was a final elimination and prioritization of the procedures. RESULTS: In total, 107 experts from 21 specialties answered the first round: 123 unique technical procedures were suggested. Response rates were 58% and 64% in the second and the third round, respectively. In the third round, 104 procedures were eliminated based on the consensus criterion, and the remaining 19 procedures were included and prioritized. The top five procedures were: (i) insert peripheral intravenous catheter, (ii) put on personal protection equipment, (iii) perform basic airway maneuvers, (iv) perform basic life support, and (v) perform radial artery puncture. CONCLUSION: Based on the Delphi process a final list of 19 technical procedures reached expert consensus to be included in the undergraduate curriculum for simulation-based education.

Ticket to perform: an explorative study of trainees' engagement in and transfer of surgical training.

BACKGROUND: Research suggests that simulation-based surgical skills training translates into improved operating room performance. Previous studies have predominantly focused on training methods and design and subsequent assessable performances and outcomes in the operating room, which only covers some aspects of training engagement and transfer of training. The purpose of this qualitative study was to contribute to the existing body of literature by exploring characteristics of first-year trainees' engagement in and perceptions of transfer of surgical skills training. METHODS: We conducted an explorative study based on individual interviews with first-year trainees in General Surgery, Urology, and Gynaecology and Obstetrics who participated in a laparoscopic skills training program. Informants were interviewed during and two months after the training program. A thematic cross-case analysis was conducted using systematic text condensation. RESULTS: We interviewed 12 informants, which produced 24 transcripts for analysis. We identified four main themes: (1) sportification of training, (2) modes of orientation, (3) transferrable skills, and (4) transfer opportunities. Informants described their surgical training using sports analogies of competition, timing, and step-by-step approaches. Visual orientations, kinaesthetic experiences, and elicited dialogues characterised training processes and engagement. These characteristics were identified in both the simulated and the clinical environment. Experiences of specific skills transfer included ambidexterity, coordination, instrument handling, and visuospatial ability. General transfer experiences were salient in informants' altered training approaches. Informants considered the simulation-based training an entry ticket to perform in the operating room and mentioned supervisor-trainee relationships and opportunities in the workplace as critical conditions of transfer. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings elucidate characteristics of surgical training engagement that can be interpreted as self-regulated learning processes that transcend surgical training environments. Despite appreciating the immediate skills improvements resulting from training, trainees' narratives reflected a struggle to transfer their training to the clinical setting. Tensions existed between perceptions of transferable skills and experiences of transfer within the clinical work environments. These results resonate with research emphasising the importance of the work environment in the transfer process. Our findings provide insights that may inform the development of training programs that support self-regulated learning and transfer of training from the simulated to the clinical environment.

Remote training in laparoscopy: a randomized trial comparing home-based self-regulated training to centralized instructor-regulated training.

BACKGROUND: Simulation-based surgical training (SBST) is key to securing future surgical expertise. Proficiency-based training (PBT) in laparoscopy has shown promising results on skills transfer. However, time constraints and limited possibilities for distributed training constitute barriers to effective PBT. Home-based training may provide a solution to these barriers and may be a feasible alternative to centralized training in times of assembly constraints. METHODS: We randomly assigned first-year trainees in abdominal surgery, gynecology, and urology to either centralized instructor-regulated training (CIRT) or home-based self-regulated training (HSRT) in laparoscopy. All participants trained on portable box trainers providing feedback on metrics and possibility for video reviewing. Training in both groups was structured as PBT with graded proficiency exercises adopted from the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS). The HSRT group trained at home guided by online learning materials, while the CIRT group attended two training sessions in the simulation center with feedback from experienced instructors. Performance tests consisted of hand-eye and bimanual coordination, suture and knot-tying, and FLS exercises. We analyzed passing rates, training time and distribution, and test performances. RESULTS: Passing rates were 87% and 96% in the CIRT and HSRT group, respectively. HSRT facilitated distributed training and resulted in greater variation in training times. Task times for hand-eye and bimanual coordination were significantly reduced between pretest and posttest in both groups. Trainees maintained their posttest performances at the 6-month retention test. Our analyses revealed no significant inter-group differences in performances at pretest, posttest, or retention test. Performance improvements in the two groups followed similar patterns. CONCLUSION: CIRT and HSRT in laparoscopy result in comparable performance improvements. HSRT in laparoscopy is a feasible and effective alternative to CIRT when offered inside a supportive instructional design. Further research is needed to clarify trainees' preferences and explore facilitators and barriers to HSRT.

Identifying technical skills and clinical procedures in surgery for a simulation-based curriculum: a national general needs assessment.

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of simulation-based training in surgical education is well known. However, the development of training programs should start with problem identification and a general needs assessment to ensure that the content is aligned with current surgical trainee needs. The objective of the present study is to identify the technical skills and clinical procedures that should be included in a simulation-based curriculum in general surgery. METHODS: A national, three-round Delphi process was conducted to achieve consensus on which technical skills and clinical procedures should be included in a simulation-based curriculum in general surgery. In total, 87 key opinion leaders were identified and invited to the study. RESULTS: Round 1 of the Delphi process had a response rate of 64% (56/87) and a total of 245 suggestions. Based on these suggestions, a consolidated list of 51 technical skills or clinical procedures was made. The response rate in Delphi round 2 was 62% (54/87) resulting in a pre-prioritized order of procedures for round 3. The response rate in Delphi round 3 was 65% (35/54). The final list included 13 technical skills and clinical procedures. Training was predominantly requested within general open surgical skills, laparoscopic skills, and endoscopic skills, and a few specific procedures such as appendectomy and cholecystectomy were included in the final prioritized list. CONCLUSION: Based on the Delphi process 13 technical skills and clinical procedures were included in the final prioritized list, which can serve as a point of departure when developing simulation-based training in surgery.

Re-examining the integration of routine and adaptive expertise: there is no such thing as routine from a motor control perspective.

The study of adaptive expertise in health professions education has focused almost exclusively on cognitive skills, largely ignoring the processes of adaptation in the performance of precision technical skills. We present a focused review of literature to argue that repetitive practice is much less repetitive than often perceived. Our main thesis is that all skilled movement reflects components of adaptive expertise. Through an overview of perspectives from the field of motor control and learning, we emphasize the interplay between the inherent noisiness of the human motor architecture and the stability of motor skill performances. Ultimately, we challenge the very idea of routine. Our goal is threefold: to reconcile common misconceptions about the rote nature of routine precision skill performance, to offer educators principles to enhance adaptive expertise as an outcome of precision skill training, and to expand the conversation between 'routine' and 'adaptive' forms of expertise in health professions education.

Balancing closure and discovery: adaptive expertise in the workplace.

Residents must develop knowledge, skills, and attitudes to handle a rapidly developing clinical environment. To address this need, adaptive expertise has been suggested as an important framework for health professions education. However, research has yet to explore the relationship between workplace learning and adaptive expertise. This study sought to investigate how clinical supervision might support the development of adaptive expertise. The present study used a focused ethnography in two emergency departments. We observed 75 supervising situations with the 27 residents resulting in 116 pages of field notes. The majority of supervision was provided by senior physicians, but also included other healthcare professionals. We found that supervision could serve two purposes: closure and discovery. Supervision aimed at discovery included practices that reflected instructional approaches said to promote adaptive expertise, such as productive struggle. Supervision aimed at closure-included practices with instructional approaches deemed important for efficient and safe patient care, such as verifying information. Our results suggest that supervision is a shared practice and responsibility. We argue that setting and aligning expectations before engaging in supervision is important. Furthermore, results demonstrated that supervision was a dynamic process, shifting between both orientations, and that supervision aimed at discovery could be an an appropriate mode of supervision, even in the most demanding clinical situations.

HipSim - hip fracture surgery simulation utilizing the Learning Curve-Cumulative Summation test (LC-CUSUM).

Background and purpose - Virtual reality simulation of hip fracture surgery is available for orthopedic residents nationwide in Denmark. Summative assessment of learning applying the learning curve cumulative summation test (LC-CUSUM) has not been utilized in orthopedic simulation training. The strength of the LC-CUSUM is that it assumes incompetency and signals competency based on solid statistics. We investigated the LC-CUSUM characteristics of novices stepwise mastering the simulated dynamic hip screw (DHS) procedure. Material and methods - 32 1st-year orthopedic residents participated in HipSim and its 3 subsequent LC-CUSUM evaluations: placing a Kirschner wire, placing a Kirschner wire in different patients, and performing the entire DHS procedure in different patients. The career status of the participants, i.e., still working in orthopedics or in another specialty was recorded ≥ 2 years after participation and associated with the simulation performance (passed/failed). Results - 13/14 participants passing HipSim according to LC-CUSUM were still working in orthopedics, while 9/18 participants failing HipSim had quit orthopedics at ≥ 2 years follow-up. The simulator-generated feedback did not statistically significantly differ between the groups. Interpretation - LC-CUSUM and its summative pass/fail assessment of each simulation was feasible in this formative simulation program. Clinical educators can be reassured that participants passing HipSim are likely to continue to 2nd-5th year of residency, while failing HipSim should raise concerns and trigger career counselling and clinical supervision. The motivational aspect of LC-CUSUM pass/fail assessment when designing formative simulation training warrants further research.

Preparing an orthopedic department for COVID-19.

Background and purpose - The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted healthcare services around the world. We (1) describe the organizational changes at a level 1 trauma center, (2) investigate how orthopedic healthcare professionals perceived the immense amount of information and educational activities, and (3) make recommendations on how an organization can prepare for disruptive situations such as the COVID-19 pandemic in the future. Methods - We conducted a retrospective survey on the organizational restructuring of the orthopedic department and the learning outcomes of a needs-driven educational program. The educational activities were evaluated by a non-validated, 7-item questionnaire. Results - The hospital established 5 COVID-19 clusters, which were planned to be activated in sequential order. The orthopedic ward comprised cluster 4, where orthopedic nursing staff were teamed up with internal medicine physicians, while the orthopedic team were redistributed to manage minor and major injuries in the emergency department (ED). The mean learning outcome of the educational activities was high-very high, i.e., 5.4 (SD 0.7; 7-point Likert scale). Consequently, the staff felt more confident to protect themselves and to treat COVID-19 patients. Interpretation - Using core clinical competencies of the staff, i.e., redistribution of the orthopedic team to the ED, while ED physicians could use their competencies treating COVID-19 patients, may be applicable in other centers. In-situ simulation is an efficient tool to enhance non-technical and technical skills and to facilitate organizational learning in regard to complying with unforeseen changes.