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Cross-Sectional Study on Experience in Musical Instruments and Basic Surgical Skills Acquisition Among Final Year
Michael Tiong Hong Co1, Billy Ho Hung Cheung1, Katrina Kwan Ching Chan1
1Centre for Education and Learning, Department of Surgery, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
ANZ Journal of Surgery
|April 24, 2026
Summary
Medical students with musical instrument experience demonstrated improved surgical skills. They completed tasks faster and with better technique compared to peers without musical backgrounds.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Surgical Training
- Psychomotor Skills
Background:
- Investigating the link between musical training and psychomotor skills in medical students.
- Assessing the transferability of skills from music to surgery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the association between musical instrument experience and surgical skills in medical students.
- To determine if musical background correlates with performance in surgical tasks.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study involving 203 final-year medical students.
- Online questionnaires for musical instrument exposure and demographics.
- Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS) for surgical skill evaluation post-training.
Main Results:
- Students with musical experience (62.3%) showed significantly faster task completion times (223.5s vs. 249.3s, p<0.001).
- Musical experience correlated with higher OSATS scores (8.28 vs. 7.79, p<0.001).
- No significant difference in performance between keyboard and string instrument players.
Conclusions:
- Musical instrument experience is positively associated with enhanced surgical task efficiency.
- Musical training appears to improve surgical technique and psychomotor performance in medical students.
- This suggests potential benefits of incorporating musical training into medical education.
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