2021 Selected Papers, Innovative Techniques, and Poster Presentations Delivered during ACS-AEI’s Virtual Research Forum

For the virtual 2021 ACS Annual Surgical Simulation Summit, 10 presenting authors gave their live presentations in a virtual format on the first day of the summit. These presentations, which covered a variety of topics, were all based on original research on simulation-based surgical education or implementation of innovative simulation-based surgical education methods. Both Papers Sessions were rigorously moderated by Robert B. Lim, COL (Ret.), MD, FACS, FASMBS, vice-chair of education, Surgery; residency program director, general surgery; and associate professor of surgery at Oklahoma University School of Medicine Tulsa.

The 2021 Program Committee Chair Gordon G. Wisbach, CPTN, MD, MBA, FACS, observed that, during these Papers Sessions, we are presenting the best original research for 2021 in an academic forum that is highly engaging with providing sage feedback to promising and leading researchers alike. The Papers Sessions are a long-standing draw for our attendees due to the content we are able to provide in the field of surgical simulation-based education and training.

Here are the 10 papers selected by the Program Committee for a podium presentation:

Papers Session I—Thursday, March 11, 11:30 am–12:30 pm CT

John Lazar, MD, MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC
Toward Objective Assessment of Robotic Lobectomy: Initial Characterization of Clinical Tasks through Video Annotation and Metrics from a Novel Kinematic and Video Data Recorder
Discussant: Laura Schumacher, MD, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Boston, MA

Ingrid Schmiederer, MD, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Central Line Training for First-Year Residents: Isolating Steps Instead of Learners
Discussant: Daniel J. Vargo, MD, FACS, Utah Center for Innovation and Simulation in Education (UCISE), Salt Lake City, UT

Ingrid Schmiederer, MD, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Checklists for Procedural Evaluations, Checkpoints for Evaluators
Discussant: Robert M. Rush, Jr., COL (Ret.), MD, FACS, PeaceHealth St Joseph’s Medical Center, Bellingham, WA

John Paige, MD, FACS, LSU Health New Orleans, New Orleans, LA
More with Less: Improvement in Student-Led Debriefing Quality in Student Operating Room Team Training Using a Revised Teamwork Assessment Tool
Discussant: Nehal Khamis, MD, PhD, MHPE, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Kyle Checchi, MD, Naval Medical Center San Diego, San Diego, CA
Special Advanced Modular Manikin™ Study

Papers Session II—Thursday, March 11, 1:30–2:30 pm CT

Brendan Lovasik, MD, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Development of a Laparoscopic Surgical Skills Simulation Curriculum: Enhancing Resident Training through Directed Practice and Closed-Loop Feedback
Discussant: Jennifer Choi, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN

LaDonna Kearse, MD, Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Diverse Surgeon Workforce: Quantifying Gender Differences in Technical Approach to Promote Awareness and Facilitate Training
Discussant: Gladys L. Fernandez, MD, Bay State Simulation Center, Springfield, MA

Julie Hartman, DC, MS, UIHC Center for Procedural Skills & Simulation, Iowa City, IA
Improving Team Communication during Veno-Veno Bypass
Discussant: Cate Nicholas, MS, PA, EdD, Clinical Simulation Laboratory at the University of Vermont, Burlington, VT

Eileen R. Smith, MD, Washington University Institute for Surgical Education (WISE), Saint Louis, MO
Minding the Robotics Gap: A New Curriculum to Equip Surgical Trainees for Emergencies in Robotic Surgery
Discussant: Gyusung Isaiah Lee, PhD, American College of Surgeons, Chicago, IL

Dimitrios Athanasiadis, MD, Department of Surgery, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN
Skill Acquisition beyond FLS: Advanced Training in Laparoscopic Suturing (ATLAS) Enhance Laparoscopic Suturing
Discussant: Dmitry Nepomnayshy, MD, MSc, FACS, Lahey Center for Professional Development and Simulation, Burlington, MA

Best in Show

Our congratulations go to Dr. LaDonna Kearse for her 2021 Best in Show presentation, Diverse Surgeon Workforce: Quantifying Gender Differences in Technical Approach to Promote Awareness and Facilitate Training, which she presented during the Thursday afternoon Papers Session. Dr. Kearse was awarded a complimentary registration to the 2022 Surgical Simulation Summit.

The Program Committee selected four authors to present their innovative research in the ACS-AEI Innovations in Simulation-Based Education session on Thursday morning, March 11 to encourage these presenters to think about their preliminary research as a potential product or curricula and to garner collaboration from interested AEIs to bring this research to fruition. This year’s session was successfully moderated by the 2022 Program Chair Deborah M. Rooney, PhD, University of Michigan Medical School. The 2021 “Shark” panel featured Robert M. Rush, Jr., COL (Ret.), MD, FACS, PeaceHealth St. Joseph’s Center and University of Washington; Rajesh Aggarwal, MBBS, MA(Cantab), PhD, FACS, FRCS, Panda Health; Dr. Rooney; and Carla M. Pugh, MD, PhD, FACS, Stanford University, who congratulated and challenged the talents of these presenters in this popular session.

“This year’s representations of innovation were exciting for both the Sharks and the audience,” remarked 2021 Program Chair Gordon G. Wisbach, CPTN, MD, MBA, FACS. “The Sharks did a fantastic job of asking probing questions and offering their expertise which would benefit these researchers with advancing their research, additionally encouraging them to continue with their innovations for surgery, and in one case, requesting to collaborate on the study.”

If you are interested in collaborating with any of the researchers who presented in this session, please contact Kathy Johnson, 312-202-5276 or kjohnson@facs.org, for more information.

2021 Innovative Techniques Presenters

David Hampton, MD, MEng, University of Chicago Medicine, Chicago, IL, and University of Chicago Medicine, Department of Surgery, Section of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, Chicago, IL
Augmented Reality Training May Decrease General Surgery Intern's Procedural Times

Francisca Belmar, MD, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
Simulation Training with Tele-Feedback Achieves a Higher Rate of Student Approval than a Traditional Bootcamp on Technical Procedures Examination

Juan Tellez, BSc, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
In-Person versus Online Suturing and Knot-Tying Skills Training during the COVID Era

Elisabeth Sappenfield, MD, Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT
Beef Tongue Surgical Simulation Model for Posterior Vaginal Repair

Nine ACS-AEI posters were made available virtually to the 2021 meeting attendees to view at their discretion. These posters presented research from a multidisciplinary approach to learners, including medical students, residents, and nurses, by offering innovations in one or more of the following categories:

• Curriculum development
• Teaching methods
• Learner evaluations
• Program evaluations
• Patient safety
• Surgical outcomes