Illinois Surgical Quality Improvement Collaborative

Video-Based Technical Skills

 

Laparoscopy and the advancement of video-capture capabilities have made it remarkably easy to record and analyze the details of an operation.  In 2013, the New England Journal of Medicine article “Surgical Skill and Complications after Bariatric Surgery” demonstrated that scores from a video-based technical skills assessment were associated with patient outcomes.  Implemented within the Michigan Bariatric Surgery Collaborative, they used edited (20-40 minutes) videos of the key components of a Roux-En-Y-Gastric Bypass procedure performed by practicing bariatric surgeons.  These videos were scored by other practicing bariatric surgeons according to the Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS) rubric and then analyzed in aggregate.  They found that better technical skill scores led to fewer complications.

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ISQIC hospitals participated in a pilot video-based coaching project for technical skills. Based on what we learned, we are now excited to offer additional opportunities for using video-based technical assessment for quality improvement, research, and much more!