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Biomedical subjects

J C Rosser

Publications and source records attributed to J C Rosser.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Evaluation of structured and quantitative training methods for teaching intracorporeal knot tying.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the effectiveness of five training methods-four structured and one unstructured-for teaching intracorporeal knot tying. METHODS: Forty-three graduate students without prior laparoscopic experience were randomly assigned to one of five training groups, and their performance in 10 intracorporeal knot tying trials was evaluated, using time to complete a knot as the outcome measure. RESULTS: The average knot tying times for the four structured groups were significantly faster than the unstructured group (p < 0.0001). Among the four structured groups, the minimally invasive surgical trainer-virtually reality (MIST-VR) and the box trainer drills showed the most rapid improvements. The MIST-VR improved average suturing time from trial one to trial two (P = 0.05), the box trainer drills group improved from trial one to trial four (P = 0.01), and the other two groups showed slower improvements. Statistically significant correlations were observed between scores on MIST-VR tasks and average knottying times (R > 0.7, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Structured training can be useful for the development of laparoscopic skills. MIST-VR is a valuable part of this training, particularly in the objective evaluation of performance.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Telementoring and teleproctoring.

Telemedicine has previously been defined as "live two-way interactive video communication between a physician and a patient and/or another physician, where all participants are able to see and hear one another much like a face to face encounter." This concept has gained recent notoriety because of the great advances in telecommunications and the potential future increased cost-effectiveness associated with its utilization. We have developed a telementoring deployment protocol that can be effectively used to introduce a student to telementoring processes. The strict protocol uses military commands to facilitate smooth information transfer. The use of a concept called tactical information deployment provides the surgeon with rapid access to reference information in the operating suite. Multimedia interactive CD-ROMs, with digitized movie clips, illustrations, sound bits, and the latest academic review of the literature arm the surgeon with a database that establishes an unprecedented clinical adaptive capability (CAC). The availability of this information is invaluable to surgeons in their initial advanced laparoscopic procedural efforts. Telementoring simulator opportunities are included to acclimate the participant to the process. If the process seems comprehensive, it is meant to be. This is a high-risk situation, and a patient's welfare is on the line. If this concept is to reach its maximal healthcare delivery potential, responsible and academically credible training programs should be established with directional guidelines.

Computer-Assisted Instruction↗
PubMed2000

Effectiveness of a CD-ROM multimedia tutorial in transferring cognitive knowledge essential for laparoscopic skill training.

BACKGROUND: Computer-assisted instruction (CAI) can benefit surgical education by improving efficiency, effectiveness, standardization, and access. This study compares knowledge gains for laparoscopic skill acquisition following a standardized tutorial delivered via CD-ROM versus live instructor. METHODS: A standardized tutorial was written and subsequently converted to multimedia CD-ROM format by its author (JR). During a laparoscopic development course, experienced US-trained surgeons (n = 52) participated in the tutorial delivered live by the author. The CD-ROM tutorial replaced the instructor for the following groups: (1) experienced US-trained surgeons (n = 27); (2) US-trained surgical residents (n = 59); and (3) Greek surgeons (n = 63). A 51-item knowledge test was administered before and after tutorial instruction. RESULTS: The mean increase in scores between pretest and posttest was significant (P <0.01) and of similar magnitude in each group, with nonsignificant posttest mean differences among US-trained groups. CONCLUSIONS: The CD-ROM tutorial effectively transfers cognitive information necessary for skill development. Distance learning modes of this tutorial program may be feasible.

CD-ROM↗
PubMed2000

Minimally invasive surgical training solutions for the twenty-first century.

Despite the tremendous impact of laparoscopic cholecystectomy on the practice of surgery over the past 9 years, minimally invasive surgery faces many challenges that must be addressed. SAGES and the American College of Surgeons already have defined guidelines that, if properly implemented, could eliminate most of these challenges. Medical educators must formulate a detailed program as to how these guidelines can be widely deployed with acceptable effectiveness. The current educational philosophies and techniques will not ensure widespread access to a standardized program that would support the achievement of the goals set forth by major surgical governing bodies. Therefore, new educational strategies and techniques that are assisted with the integration of cost-effective technology are needed. Suggested solutions include the deployment of a standardized, objective-based skill-development program that has a large database to evaluate the progress of participants. Next, the Internet, with its ability to transfer content with the click of a mouse, will play an increasing role in distant education. Video and audio streaming techniques will allow the deployment of content previously shackled to a CD-ROM platform. CD-ROM interactive technology also can help in developing clinical judgment with innovative strategies, such as Objective-Based Clinical Competency Evaluation Scenarios. Telecommunications will fuse the components of a coordinated distant learning strategy. Also, telecommunications will allow the availability of new training capabilities in the form of teleproctoring and telementoring to hospitals, no matter what their size or location. All of these components combined enable the realization of a continuing education program in minimally invasive surgery that is readily available to hospitals worldwide. Last, institutions, resident training programs, and individual surgeons must commit the time to partake in these cutting-edge programs for challenges facing us to be completely eliminated. A high priority must be placed on the resolution of these issues.

Education, Medical↗
PubMed2000

Evaluation of the effectiveness of portable low-bandwidth telemedical applications for postoperative followup: initial results.

BACKGROUND: The idea of using telemedical applications to evaluate patients remotely is several decades old. It has already been established that x-ray images (and magnetic resonance images) can be transferred using a personal computer and a modem, and many other such applications have been implemented. Over the past 50 years the expense and technical demands of the equipment involved in telemedicine have hindered its widespread deployment. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the ability of a mobile, low-bandwidth telemedicine platform to achieve real-time postoperative visits in the home. STUDY DESIGN: This evaluation was designed to evaluate the feasibility of performing a real-time clinical visit with computer and telecommunications hardware and software. A nurse and medical student (for information gathering only) made postoperative visits at patients' homes while the physician stayed at the office. Clinical evaluations were performed by using low-resolution and frame-rate video, high-resolution still images, and simultaneous telephony over a standard telephone line. These remote visits were followed by a standard visit in the office. Eleven patients were included, all of whom had undergone various laparoscopic procedures. They lived 5 to 240 miles from their surgeon. Efficiency was measured by recording the time required to capture and send data required by the physician to make a clinical decision. The time expense was measured at both the patients' and physician's locations. Technical issues were evaluated and patient satisfaction was assessed by standardized objective questionnaires. The accuracy of the evaluation at the remote visit was determined with a standard office visit. RESULTS: No technical problems were observed. The mean total time of the housecall at the remote site was 86 minutes (range 60 to 160 minutes) and at the base station site was 41 minutes (range 21 to 71 minutes). After personnel became familiar with the system, the last three visits averaged 61 and 25 minutes at the two sites, respectively. This corresponds favorablywith current time requirements for visiting nurses and office visits. The patients were highly satisfied with the home visit and, on average, rated the experience as 4.8 out of a maximum of 5. CONCLUSIONS: Followup visits in patients' homes after laparoscopic procedures can be accomplished by transmitting simultaneous voice, low-resolution video, and high-resolution still images to accurately perform postoperative evaluations over standard telephone lines, with time requirements and clinical accuracy similar to those of standard visits.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

A simplified technique for laparoscopic jejunostomy and gastrostomy tube placement.

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy and jejunostomy tube placement have long been considered the standard for supplying enteral nutrition when oral intake is not possible. Both have well-documented roles and limitations and are associated with a higher than generally appreciated incidence of aspiration. A distally placed tube in the jejunum decreases the chance of this morbid complication. Additionally, when percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy is indicated but cannot be done for technical reasons, a minimally invasive alternative is desirable. METHODS: In prior series, the techniques suggested for laparoscopic enteral access have characteristics that are either difficult for the average surgeon to duplicate, or use nonstandard anchoring techniques of the bowel to the abdominal wall. A simple, laparoscopically directed, percutaneous technique utilizing cost-effective appliances is described, and suggested indications are outlined. RESULTS: This technique has been successfully applied in 46 patients with minimal complications. CONCLUSIONS: A simplified technique for laparoscopic jejunostomy and gastrostomy tube placement is described. This has been successfully deployed in 46 patients with minimal morbidity. The procedure lessens the need for sophisticated suturing skills and duplicates standard small bowel to abdominal wall fixation methods.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Use of mobile low-bandwith telemedical techniques for extreme telemedicine applications.

BACKGROUND: Telemedicine is traditionally associated with the use of very expensive and bulky telecommunications equipment along with substantial bandwidth requirements (128 kilobytes per second [kbps] or greater). Telementoring is an educational technique that involves real-time guidance of a less experienced physician through a procedure in which he or she has limited experience. This technique has been especially dependent on the aforementioned requirements. Traditionally, telemedicine and telementoring have been restricted to technically sophisticated sites. The telemedicine applications through the existing telecommunication infrastructure has not been possible for underdeveloped parts of the world. STUDY DESIGN: Telemedicine and telementoring were applied using low-bandwidth mobile telemedicine applications to support a mobile surgery program in rural Ecuador run by the Cinterandes Foundation and headed by Edgar Rodas, MD. A mobile operating room traveled to a remote region of Ecuador. Using a laptop computer equipped with telemedicine software, a videoconferencing system, and a digital camera, surgical patients were evaluated and operative decisions were made over low-bandwidth telephone lines. Similarly, surgeons in the mobile unit in Ecuador were telementored by an experienced surgeon located thousands of miles away at Yale University School of Medicine. RESULTS: Five preoperative evaluations were conducted from Sucua to Cuenca, Ecuador, with excellent clinical correlation. Additionally, a laparoscopic cholecystectomy was successfully telementored from the department of surgery at Yale University School of Medicine to the mobile surgery unit in Ecuador. The telementored surgery was performed using a telephone line with a baud rate of 12 kbps. CONCLUSIONS: Mobile, low-bandwidth telemedicine applications used in the proper technical and clinical algorithms can be very effective in supporting remote health care delivery efforts. Advantages of such applications include increased cost-effectiveness by limiting travel, expanding services to patients, and increased patient quality assurance.

Ecuador↗
PubMed1998

Objective evaluation of a laparoscopic surgical skill program for residents and senior surgeons.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic surgery adapts poorly to apprenticeship models for general surgical training. Standardized skill acquisition and validation programs, targeted performance goals, and a supervised, enforced, skill-based curriculum that readily can be shared between trainee and instructor must replace the observation and incremental skill-acquisition model used in an open surgical environment. The Yale Laparoscopic Skills and Suturing Program was used to develop a data bank for objective evaluation of dexterity and suturing skills for laparoscopic surgical training. The current study compares trainee and senior surgeon performance in this standardized training program. OBJECTIVE: To compare objectively evaluated laparoscopic surgical skills and suturing capability of senior surgeons and of residents after they have completed the same standardized training regimen. METHODS: Two hundred ninety-one trained surgeons performed 8730 standardized laparoscopic dexterity drills and 2910 intracorporeal suturing exercises in the Yale Laparoscopic Skills and Suturing Program. Their performance was supervised by an instructor who recorded performance and timing of the tasks in a 2 1/2-day program. Ninety-nine residents performed the same drills and exercises the same number of times and followed the same technique for intracorporeal suturing. Percentile graphs were prepared for each type of drill and suturing exercise to allow comparison of levels of achievement among different training groups. RESULTS: The performance of the residents was the same as that of trained surgeons for the rope pass drill and the suturing exercise. Residents in comparison with trained surgeons performed the triangle transfer drill faster and the new cup drop drill and old cup drop drill more slowly. There was no significant difference in performance between male and female residents. CONCLUSION: Basic skills relevant to laparoscopic performance can be acquired with a high level of competence in a brief course unrelated to prior surgical experience, sex, or age.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Skill acquisition and assessment for laparoscopic surgery.

OBJECTIVES: To describe a training method with objective evaluation to enhance laparoscopic surgical skills to provide training in laparoscopic suturing techniques and to assess whether specific training exercises were helpful in the attainment of intracorporeal suturing skills. DESIGN: Trainees (N = 150) were asked to perform standardized drills with distinct mechanical features, and skill acquisition was determined by accuracy and timing. Trainees were tested for the ability to perform an intracorporeal laparoscopic suture before and after analogous skill training with the drills. SETTING: The training courses were held in teaching and nonteaching hospitals. PARTICIPANTS: Board-certified or board-eligible surgeons. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Supervision by trained instructors and documentation of the time required to perform standardized drills. RESULTS: The trainees showed steady improvement in skill acquisition during 10 trials (P < .001). Significant (P < .001) improvement was noted for the performance of suturing after compared with before the drills. CONCLUSION: Three standardized laparoscopic drills have been tested in 150 trainees and demonstrate the incremental acquisition of skills that correlate with improved performance in a challenging and complex laparoscopic skill, intracorporeal suturing.

Clinical Competence↗
PubMed1997

Telementoring. A practical option in surgical training.

BACKGROUND: Telemedicine offers significant advantages in bringing consulting support to distant colleagues. There is a shortage of surgeons trained in performing advanced laparoscopic operations. AIM: Our aim was to evaluate the role of telementoring in the training of advanced laparoscopic surgical procedures. METHODS: Student surgeons received a uniform training format to enhance their laparoscopic skills and intracorporeal suturing techniques and specific procedural training in laparoscopic colonic resections and Nissen fundoplication. Subsequently, operating rooms were equipped with three cameras. Telestrator (teleguidance device), instant replay (to critique errors), and CD-ROM programs (to provide information of reference) were used as intraoperative educational assistance tools. In phase I, four colonic resections were performed with the mentor in the operating room (group A) and four colonic resections were performed with the mentor on the hospital grounds, but not in the operating room (group B). The voice and video signals were received at the mentor's location, using coaxial cable. In phase II, two Nissen fundoplications were performed with the mentors in the operating room (group C) and two Nissen fundoplications were performed with the mentors positioned five miles away from the operating room (group D), using currently existing land lines at the T-1 level. RESULTS: There were no differences in the performances of the surgeons and outcome of the operations between groups A & B and C & D. It was possible to tackle the intraoperative problems effectively. CONCLUSIONS: The telementoring concept is potentially a safe and cost-effective option for advanced training in laparoscopic operations. Further investigation is necessary before routine transcontinental patient applications are attempted.

Fundoplication↗
PubMed1995

Telemedicine: delivering medical expertise across the state and around the world.

Many aspects of medical care can now be delivered at a distance using telemedicine technology. Rapid video and computer-based communication of medical information makes it possible for a physician to "examine" a patient located in another city, to view highly detailed medical images, to consult with distant subspecialists, or to supervise complex medical procedures. This same technology can bring scattered health-care workers together for joint teaching conferences. The Yale Telemedicine Center has initiated a number of such programs ranging from providing consultations in real time to physicians in Saudi Arabia, to interpreting medical images across town or across the state. Telemedicine will become a powerful tool for managed health-care organizations which are responsible for the medical needs of widely distributed patients in a vertically integrated health-care delivery system. This paper reviews the evolution of telemedicine, its technical fundamentals, specific medical applications, and the activities of the Yale Telemedicine Center. Evolving uses for telemedicine in Connecticut are described.

Connecticut↗
PubMed1993

A new and simple approach to open laparoscopy.

This new and simple approach to laparoscopy should be in the armamentarium of every laparoscopic surgeon. Similar to the dissection involved with an open peritoneal lavage, the peritoneal cavity is entered. After placement of a pursestring fascial suture, the introducer and laparoscope are inserted. The suture is used to provide an airtight seal and close the defect at the termination of the procedure. We believe that this is a safe, rapid, effective technique that is easy to learn.

Humans↗
PubMed1992

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in an infant.

Use of the laparoscopic approach in traditionally open procedures has developed rapidly in recent years. Despite this intensive rate of evolution, most procedures have been done in adult patients, with pediatric patients largely excluded. This paper reviews a case report of a laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a 19-month-old male. This effort presents new data and techniques to encourage further investigation into minimally invasive surgery in the pediatric age group.

Cholecystectomy, Laparoscopic↗