Analysis Of A Computer Based Simulator As An Educational Tool For Cystoscopy: Subjective And Objective Results

Main Category: Urology / Nephrology
Also Included In: IT / Internet / E-mail
Article Date: 08 Mar 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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UroToday.com - Simulation of minimally invasive surgical techniques, as a method of deliberative practice with feedback, is gaining broad acceptance in surgical education. While this study, of a virtual reality cystoscopy simulator, has shown that it can distinguish the novice from the expert endoscopist based on performance scores, it also highlights the learning curve effect of this teaching method. Other researchers have shown that it takes 3 to 5 trials before novice trainees reach a plateau in their learning curve of just understanding and working with a VR simulator.1 It takes another 4 or 5 practices before the novice begins to approach the skill level of the expert during training. As such, the trainee must first be taught what to learn, why it should be learned and how it should be learned. Of equal importance is instructing the trainee what is an error, why it is an error, and what to do to avoid the error. The more important study to be accomplished with the simulator is to determine whether the performance on the simulator accurately predicts the surgeon's performance of the same procedure in the clinical setting with a patient. We eagerly await these predictive validity evaluations of simulated skills trainers.

1.Uribe JI, Ralph WM Jr, Glaser AY, Fried MP: Learning curves, acquisition, and retention of skill trained with the endoscopic sinus surgery simulator. Am J Rhinol 2004; 18(2): 87 92.

M.T. Gettman, C.Q. Le, L.J. Rangel, J.M. Slezak, E.J. Bergstralh, A.E. Krambeck

Journal of Urology 2008; 179(1):267-271

Reported by UroToday.com Contributing Editor Elspeth M. McDougall, MD, FRCSC Professor of Urology Director, Yamanouchi Center for Urological Education

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