Role of Video Documentation and Video Portfolios for... : Journal of the American College of Surgeons (original) (raw)

Surgical education

Green, Courtney A. MD; O'Sullivan, Patricia; Kim, Edward MD; Chern, Hueylan MD

University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA

Free

INTRODUCTION: Program directors in general and subspecialty surgery must assess resident progression toward competency in surgical skills. This study investigated the perception of usefulness of video for documenting basic surgical skill competency in general surgery and surgical specialties.

METHODS: Program and assistant program directors at our institution in ophthalmology, orthopaedics, otolaryngology, urology, oral and maxillofacial, general, and plastic surgery received an anonymous 8-item survey, including an example video clip of an intern completing a vertical mattress suture. Respondents answered questions about how various basic skills pertained to their specific specialties, potential benefits of video documentation as demonstrated in the example clip, and current practices for documenting skill competency.

RESULTS: Response rate was 88% (14/16), and all felt skills highlighted in the video, such as needle handling and knot tying, were “somewhat” or “very” relevant to their subspecialty. Respondents agreed (64% to 79%) that competency in 2-handed tie, 1-handed tie, tie without tension, subcuticular suture, horizontal suture, and vertical suture was relevant to their specialty. Sixty-four percent valued video documentation of interns' skills. They endorsed these potential uses of videos: ongoing documentation (78%), tailoring residents' operative experience (64%), and developing remediation plans (64%). No documentation of resident skill prior to operating room exposure was reported by 79%. Written comments were positive about video documentation.

CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that surgical knot tying and suturing skills are relevant, and portfolios with videos of these skills may be useful to demonstrate progression toward competency. Future employers may request these portfolios to evaluate surgeons' qualifications.