Improving Confidence and Practical Skills in Plastic Surgery for Medical Students and Junior Doctors: A One-Day Session ()
ABSTRACT
Objectives:
The current medical school curriculum offers scant exposure to plastic surgery.
Medical students and junior doctors are often inadequately prepared for in-hospital
placements which may impact on patient safety and quality of care. We aimed to
deliver a one-day “hands-on” practical session on basic surgical skills and
principles in plastic surgery, and to assess its effectiveness at improving
confidence to the specialty among junior trainees. Methods: The one-day
practical session covered knot tying, suturing, LA administration, skin lesion
excision and local flaps, with short concurrent lectures on principles of
plastic surgery. Self-assessment confidence scores were recorded before and
after the course on seven domains: a) knowledge: wound assessment and
management, suture selection, and concepts of flaps; b) practical skills: Handling
of surgical instrument, suturing, LA administration, and skin lesion excision. Results:
Thirty-five participants attended: Six core surgical trainees, fifteen
foundation doctors, and fourteen medical students. The overall course
satisfaction was 9.13/10. Self-assessment confidence scores in all domains
significantly improved after the course (p < 0.0001). Suturing (58.6%) and skin lesion excision (74.5%)
demonstrated the largest improvement. Qualitative feedback was extremely
positive. Conclusions: The hands-on nature of the course offered participants
great opportunities to acquire the necessary confidence and practical skills
required for in-hospital placements. It is vital for students and doctors
interested in a career in plastic surgery to prepare adequately for this
diverse specialty, which is covered in limited depth in medical school. The need
for more practical skills courses on plastic surgery for this demographic is
intuitive.
Share and Cite:
Leung, B. , Leo, A. , Khundkar, R. , Leung, N. , Reed, A. and Cogswell, L. (2016) Improving Confidence and Practical Skills in Plastic Surgery for Medical Students and Junior Doctors: A One-Day Session.
Surgical Science,
7, 433-442. doi:
10.4236/ss.2016.79059.