An experiential teaching session on the anesthesia machine check improves resident performance.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Anesthesiology
• Patient Safety

Background:

• Preoperative anesthesia machine checks are critical for patient safety.
• Machine malfunctions are frequently missed, even by experienced clinicians.
• Current training methods may not adequately prepare residents for thorough machine checks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of an experiential simulation training session for anesthesia machine checks.
• To compare the performance of junior residents (PGY-1) receiving simulation training with senior residents (PGY-5) receiving didactic training.
• To assess the long-term retention of machine-checking skills.

Main Methods:

• An experiential machine check training session was implemented for postgraduate year 1 (PGY-1) residents.
• A control group of postgraduate year 5 (PGY-5) residents received only didactic training.
• Participants performed a simulated anesthesia machine check with preset faults; performance was evaluated using a checklist and fault detection rates.
• A retention test was conducted for simulation residents who became PGY-5 residents.

Main Results:

• Simulation-trained residents demonstrated significantly higher checklist scores and detected more machine faults compared to the control group (P < 0.001).
• These superior performance levels were maintained when simulation residents were tested again in their senior year.
• Retention tests showed that simulation-trained residents continued to outperform controls two to four years post-training.

Conclusions:

• Experiential simulation training equips junior residents with superior anesthesia machine-checking skills compared to traditional didactic methods.
• This simulation-based approach leads to durable skill acquisition, outperforming senior colleagues.
• Simulation training is a highly effective method for improving resident competency and ensuring patient safety in anesthesiology.