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Updated: May 31, 2026
Simulator Training for Endovascular Neurosurgery
Published on: May 6, 2020
Construct validity and reliability of structured assessment of endoVascular expertise in a simulated setting
1Centre for Clinical Education, University of Copenhagen and Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark. bechbo@gmail.com
Objectives:
To study the construct validity and reliability of a novel endovascular global rating scale, Structured Assessment of endoVascular Expertise (SAVE).
Design:
A Clinical, experimental study.
Materials:
Twenty physicians with endovascular experiences ranging from complete novices to highly experienced operators performed a video-recorded simulated contra-lateral iliac-artery-stenting procedure. The virtual-patient case was a novel technically challenging procedure presenting the distal arteries below the knee.
Methods:
Three experts assessed the performances blinded to operator identity. Validity was analysed by correlating experience with performance results. Reliability was analysed according to generalisability theory.
Results:
The mean score on the 29 items of the SAVE scale correlated well with clinical experience (R = 0.84, P < 0.01) and was found discriminative even among the more experienced participants having performed up to 500 endovascular procedures in total. Only the most experienced participants (>5000 procedures) obtained maximum scores. The inter-rater reliability was high (G = 0.94 and G = 0.95). The procedure time (median 69 min, range 32-86) correlated moderately with clinical experience (R = -0.53, P < 0.05), whereas the fluoroscopy time and amount of contrast fluid did not correlate.
Conclusions:
The construct validity and reliability of assessment with the SAVE scale was high when applied to performances in a simulation setting with advanced realism. No ceiling effect was present in the assessment situation.
