Surgical declarative knowledge learning: concept and acceptability study

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training Technology
• Knowledge Management

Background:

• Surgical training requires both declarative ('knowing what') and procedural ('knowing how') knowledge.
• Existing tools primarily support procedural knowledge acquisition, neglecting declarative knowledge formalization and access.
• There is a need for effective methods to structure and present surgical declarative knowledge to trainees.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and evaluate an approach for structuring surgical declarative knowledge based on procedural knowledge using surgical process modeling.
• To develop and assess a software application for managing and presenting this structured knowledge.
• To determine the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of the proposed approach and software.

Main Methods:

• Developed a software application based on surgical process modeling to structure declarative knowledge.
• Evaluated the concept and software usability with neurosurgeons (endoscopic third ventriculostomy) and scrub nurses (craniotomy preparation).
• Collected feedback on the approach and software from participants.

Main Results:

• Surgical process models effectively structure and visualize surgical declarative knowledge.
• The software was perceived as an innovative tool for managing and presenting surgical knowledge by both neurosurgeons and scrub nurses.
• Preliminary results indicate the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of the approach and software.

Conclusions:

• The proposed approach using surgical process modeling is a viable method for structuring surgical declarative knowledge.
• The developed software demonstrates potential as an innovative tool for surgical knowledge management and presentation.
• Further research is needed to investigate the impact of this approach on actual knowledge acquisition in surgical training.