Surgical anatomy in obstetrics and gynaecology: The trainees' perspective

Abstract

Trainees perceive limitations in their anatomical knowledge. A formalised RANZCOG anatomy course would be of value in providing structured education and assessment of trainees' knowledge and establishing whether there are improvements in surgical competencies.

Applied anatomy knowledge in gynaecology and obstetrics: the trainees’ perception

“…While 21.2% and 6.9% of first-year and fifth-year trainees, respectively, rated their overall anatomy knowledge as either very poor or poor, 9.6% of first-year trainees and 62% of fifth-year rated their knowledge as either good or very good. Similar trends in overall surgical anatomy knowledge were shown by Sgroi et al [6] where 11% of O&G resident doctors reported their surgical anatomical knowledge as adequate at the beginning of training, and 77% reported adequate knowledge by the final year of training. In addition, final year residents were more able to identify structures compared to firstyear residents.…”

“…The results of our study showed that trainees who attended and/or performed surgical procedures more often rated their surgical anatomy knowledge higher. Another report showed that the surgical anatomy knowledge of resident doctors was related to the number of procedures they performed as primary surgeons [6].…”

“…Sgori et al [6] evaluated trainees' perceptions of anatomical knowledge in obstetrics and gynaecology (O&G) training programmes and recognised limitations in applied anatomy knowledge among trainees at all levels. Therefore, they suggested formally applied anatomy courses during residency training.…”

Cultivating the Apprentice-Mentor Model for Minimally Invasive Gynaecology in the Era of Surgically Scarce Training: A Case Report of Laparoscopic Cornuostomy for Interstitial Ectopic Pregnancy by a Trainee

“…With working hour restrictions, lack of protected training time, and merciless struggle for operating time amongst trainees, the bulk of these preparations needs to be done outside of working hours and the OR. A simple initial step would be to develop a solid grasp of surgical anatomy through textbooks or focused workshops [22]; indeed, a recent survey of Australian O&G trainees revealed a clear dearth of structured anatomy curricula in the training program [23]. Further, regular review of laparoscopic videos, either open-source or those manually recorded, has also been shown to be useful for skill acquisition amongst gynaecologic residents, particularly in junior learners [24].…”

A Randomized Multicenter Study Assessing the Educational Impact of a Computerized Interactive Hysterectomy Trainer on Gynecology Residents

“…These have resulted in a reduction in the number of abdominal and vaginal hysterectomies a resident performs per year [1,2]. Other factors affecting surgical training are the reduced time available for attending teaching [3], reduction and restrictions in resident duty hours [4], impact of electronic medical records [5], inadequate teaching and understanding of anatomy [6], and financial impact of teaching in the operating room [7]. Evidence for the inadequacies of recent graduates is found in a recent survey of 130 Ob-Gyn fellowship directors who reported only 20% of first-year fellows were able to independently perform a vaginal hysterectomy, and 46% were able to independently perform an abdominal hysterectomy [8].…”