A novel approach to endourological training: Training at the surgical skills center

Purpose: We investigated the effects of didactic teaching and supervised ha nds-on practice on endourological skills using high fidelity genitourinary bench models at a surgical skills laboratory. We also validated a global ra ting scale and checklist designed specifically for endourological tasks. Materials and Methods: We assessed 17 urology residents for the ability to remove a mid ureteral stone using a high fidelity genitourinary model on 3 occasions, including a pre-test at the beginning of the study to assess bas eline skills, after a didactic teaching session and after a supervised prac tice session on high fidelity models. Performance was graded according to a global rating scale, checklist, pass rating and time needed to complete ta sk. Results: Senior residents achieved significantly higher pre-test global rat ing scores than junior residents (p < 0.01). One-way repeated measures anal ysis of variance revealed a significant effect of training on the endoscopi c global rating score (p < 0.001). Post-hoc tests demonstrated significant improvement in the global rating scores from the pre-test to the post-didac tic session (p < 0.05) and from the post-didactic to the post-practice sess ion (p < 0.01). Interrater reliability using the global rating scale was hi gh (Pearson's r = 0.82, p < 0.01). Significant but less powerful results we re observed in the checklist score, pass rating and time. Conclusions: There was a positive effect of training at the surgical skills laboratory on endourological skills. The global rating scale showed good c onstruct validity and reliability for assessing endourological tasks, more so than the checklist, pass rating or time.