Demonstrating the effectiveness of the fundamentals of robotic surgery (FRS) curriculum on the RobotiX Mentor Virtual Reality Simulation Platform

AbstractFundamentals of robotic surgery (FRS) is a proficiency-based progression curriculum developed by robotic surgery experts from multiple specialty areas to address gaps in existing robotic surgery training curricula. The RobotiX Mentor is a virtual reality training platform for robotic surgery. Our aims were to determine if robotic surgery novices would demonstrate improved technical skills after completing FRS training on the RobotiX Mentor, and to compare the effectiveness of FRS across training platforms. An observational, pre-post design, multi-institutional rater-blinded trial was conducted at two American College of Surgeons Accredited Education Institutes-certified simulation centers. Robotic surgery novices (n = 20) were enrolled and trained to expert-derived benchmarks using FRS on the RobotiX Mentor. Participants’ baseline skill was assessed before (pre-test) and after (post-test) training on an avian tissue model. Tests were video recorded and graded by blinded raters using the Global Evaluative Assessment of Robotic Skills (GEARS) and a 32-criteria psychomotor checklist. Post hoc comparisons were conducted against previously published comparator groups. On paired-samplesT tests, participants demonstrated improved performance across all GEARS domains (p <  0.001 top = 0.01) and for time (p <  0.001) and errors (p = 0.003) as measured by psychometric checklist. By ANOVA, improvement in novices’ skill after FRS training on the Robo...
Source: Journal of Robotic Surgery - Category: Surgery Source Type: research