The impact of DaVinci simulator competitions on medical student interest in robotic surgery

Robotic surgery has expanded significantly over the last decade. To help train learners, many institutions have implemented various training methods. Studies have shown that simulation training is an effective tool to develop skills for both residents and attending physicians. However, its influence on medical student training is unclear. Medical students were asked to compete in a 4-month da Vinci robotic console simulation tournament. Participants were given unlimited attempts to achieve the highest score possible on four different modules. Questionnaires were completed before and after the tournament to assess baseline demographics, surgical confidence, and perceptions toward robotic surgery. Performance data from the simulator was collected for each participant. A total of 12 medical students completed the tournament. Paired T-test analysis of pre-survey and post-survey questionnaires demonstrated significant increases in reported interest in robotic surgery (p < 0.001) and surgery overall (p = 0.0028). Self-reported surgical confidence using the simulator also increased significantly (p = 0.0043). There was an increase in overall performance across all modules when comparing first and last attempts (p < 0.001), (p < 0.001), (p = 0.0031), and (p = 0.011). Spearman's rank correlation analyses showed an association between overall performance and number of attempts for two of four modules (p = 0.0063) and (p = 0.046). Tournament-style simulation training increased medical students' surgical skill dexterity, confidence and interest in robotic surgery. Additional research with larger sample sizes are necessary to fully characterize the effectiveness of robotic surgical training for medical students.