Objective assessment of temporal bone drilling skills

Area of Science:

• Surgical Education
• Medical Simulation
• Otolaryngology Research

Background:

• Surgeons require technical skill training through simulation.
• Objective assessment tools for laboratory surgical training are limited.
• Temporal bone drilling is a key otolaryngology skill requiring evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess three objective tools for evaluating temporal bone drilling performance.
• To determine the reliability and correlation of assessment tools with surgical experience.
• To validate tools for objective surgical skill assessment in otolaryngology.

Main Methods:

• Nineteen otolaryngology residents performed cadaveric temporal bone drilling.
• Participants were categorized as experienced or novice based on prior drilling.
• Four assessment methods were used: Global Rating Scale (GRS), Task-Based Checklist (TBC), Final Product Analysis (FPA), and Expert Opinion (EO).

Main Results:

• All four assessment tools demonstrated good interrater reliability.
• The GRS, TBC, and EO correlated with trainee experience.
• The FPA did not correlate with trainee experience, but the TBC showed strong correlation with EO.

Conclusions:

• Expert Opinion (EO), Global Rating Scale (GRS), and Task-Based Checklist (TBC) are validated measures for temporal bone drilling.
• The TBC is the most reliable objective assessment tool, correlating best with EO.
• The TBC can be effectively utilized for objective evaluation of temporal bone drilling proficiency.