Effects of Technological Advances in Surgical Education on Quantitative Outcomes From Residency Programs.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this article is to review the literature on current technology for surgical education and to evaluate the effect of technological advances on the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Core Competencies, American Board of Surgery In-Training Examination (ABSITE) scores, and American Board of Surgery (ABS) certification.

DESIGN: A literature search was obtained from MEDLINE via PubMed.gov, ScienceDirect.com, and Google Scholar on all peer-reviewed studies published since 2003 using the following search queries: technology for surgical education, simulation-based surgical training, simulation-based nontechnical skills (NTS) training, ACGME Core Competencies, ABSITE scores, and ABS pass rate.

RESULTS: Our initial search list included the following: 648 on technology for surgical education, 413 on simulation-based surgical training, 51 on simulation-based NTS training, 78 on ABSITE scores, and 33 on ABS pass rate. Further, 42 articles on technological advances for surgical education met inclusion criteria based on their effect on ACGME Core Competencies, ABSITE scores, and ABS certification. Systematic review showed that 33 of 42 and 26 of 42 publications on technological advances for surgical education showed objective improvements regarding patient care and medical knowledge, respectively, whereas only 2 of 42 publications showed improved ABSITE scores, but none showed improved ABS pass rates. Improvements in the other ACGME core competencies were documented in 14 studies, 9 of which were on simulation-based NTS training.

CONCLUSIONS: Most of the studies on technological advances for surgical education have shown a positive effect on patient care and medical knowledge. However, the effect of simulation-based surgical training and simulation-based NTS training on ABSITE scores and ABS certification has not been assessed. Studies on technological advances in surgical education and simulation-based NTS training showing quantitative evidence that surgery residency program objectives are achieved are still needed.