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Research Article: Comparing proficiency of obstetrics and gynaecology trainees with general surgery trainees using simulated laparoscopic tasks in Health Education England, North-West: a prospective observational study

Date Published: 2023-11-10

Abstract:
Background Training programmes for obstetrics and gynaecology (O&G) and general surgery (GS) vary significantly, but both require proficiency in laparoscopic skills. We sought to determine performance in each specialty. Design Prospective, observational study. Setting Health Education England North-West, UK. Participants 47 surgical trainees (24 O&G and 23 GS) were subdivided into four groups: 11 junior O&G, 13 senior O&G, 11 junior GS and 12 senior GS trainees. Objectives Trainees were tested on four simulated laparoscopic tasks: laparoscopic camera navigation (LCN), hand–eye coordination (HEC), bimanual coordination (BMC) and suturing with intracorporeal knot tying (suturing). Results O&G trainees completed LCN (p<0.001), HEC (p<0.001) and BMC (p<0.001) significantly slower than GS trainees. Furthermore, O&G found fewer number of targets in LCN (p=0.001) and dropped a greater number of pins than the GS trainees in BMC (p=0.04). In all three tasks, there were significant differences between O&G and GS trainees but no difference between the junior and senior groups within each specialty. Performance in suturing also varied by specialty; senior O&G trainees scored significantly lower than senior GS trainees (O&G 11.4±4.4?vs GS 16.8±2.1, p=0.03). Whilst suturing scores improved with seniority among O&G trainees, there was no difference between the junior and senior GS trainees (senior O&G 11.4±4.4?vs junior O&G 3.6±2.1, p=0.004). Discussion GS trainees performed better than O&G trainees in core laparoscopic skills, and the structure of O&G training may require modification. Trial registration number ClinicalTrials.gov Registry ( NCT05116332 ).

Introduction:
The foundations of laparoscopic surgery were laid by gynaecologists and the first sterilisation procedure was performed laparoscopically in 1936. 1 Gynaecologists have led advancements in laparoscopy through innovation in laparoscopic instruments and educational tools such as the pelvic simulator trainer and Hasson’s open technique for entry, which is widely used by general surgeons today. 1 2 Obstetrics and gynaecology (O&G) and general surgery (GS) trainees are required to demonstrate competency in different…

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