Development of a robotic training curriculum for visceral and gastrointestinal surgical trainees: an international Delphi study
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background
The rapid adoption of robotic surgical systems globally has created a critical gap in training, assessment and certification for visceral and gastrointestinal (GI) surgical trainees. This study, led by the European Association for Endoscopic Surgery (EAES), aimed to achieve an international consensus on a structured, platform-agnostic robotic training curriculum for GI surgical trainees.
Methods
A 106-item Delphi questionnaire was developed with an international committee of surgical experts, trainees, methodologists and patient representatives. It was disseminated to a multidisciplinary panel of 83 GI robotic surgeons, trainees, human factors experts, robotic theatre team members and industry providers. Two Delphi survey rounds were conducted, with a priori consensus standard set at 70% or higher for agreement. A consensus meeting was subsequently held to discuss and finalise the items needed for a robotic training curriculum for GI surgical trainees.
Results
Seventy-one (86%) participants from 15 countries completed round 1. A total of 82 items (77%) reached consensus and 32 new items were generated from free-text comments. Seventy of these participants (99%) completed the 56-item round 2 questionnaire, with 36 items (64%) reaching consensus and 5 new items generated. All 143 statements were discussed in the meeting and consensus was reached in the following areas: (i) key knowledge requirements of the bedside assistant and a console surgeon; (ii) training components; (iii) performance assessment and (iv) certification and supervision.
Conclusions
International surgical experts, trainees and other key stakeholders reached consensus on the critical components of a platform-agnostic robotic training curriculum for GI surgical trainees. This will help shape the future of robotic surgical education and certification, promote standardised training practices and ultimately benefit patient safety and outcomes.
The rapid adoption of robotic surgical systems globally has created a critical gap in training, assessment and certification for visceral and gastrointestinal (GI) surgical trainees. This study, led by the European Association for Endoscopic Surgery (EAES), aimed to achieve an international consensus on a structured, platform-agnostic robotic training curriculum for GI surgical trainees.
Methods
A 106-item Delphi questionnaire was developed with an international committee of surgical experts, trainees, methodologists and patient representatives. It was disseminated to a multidisciplinary panel of 83 GI robotic surgeons, trainees, human factors experts, robotic theatre team members and industry providers. Two Delphi survey rounds were conducted, with a priori consensus standard set at 70% or higher for agreement. A consensus meeting was subsequently held to discuss and finalise the items needed for a robotic training curriculum for GI surgical trainees.
Results
Seventy-one (86%) participants from 15 countries completed round 1. A total of 82 items (77%) reached consensus and 32 new items were generated from free-text comments. Seventy of these participants (99%) completed the 56-item round 2 questionnaire, with 36 items (64%) reaching consensus and 5 new items generated. All 143 statements were discussed in the meeting and consensus was reached in the following areas: (i) key knowledge requirements of the bedside assistant and a console surgeon; (ii) training components; (iii) performance assessment and (iv) certification and supervision.
Conclusions
International surgical experts, trainees and other key stakeholders reached consensus on the critical components of a platform-agnostic robotic training curriculum for GI surgical trainees. This will help shape the future of robotic surgical education and certification, promote standardised training practices and ultimately benefit patient safety and outcomes.
Date Issued
2026-06-01
Date Acceptance
2026-03-21
Citation
United European Gastroenterology Journal, 2026, 14 (5)
ISSN
2050-6406
Publisher
Wiley
Journal / Book Title
United European Gastroenterology Journal
Volume
14
Issue
5
Copyright Statement
© 2026 The Author(s). Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of BJS Foundation Ltd., Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of United European Gastroenterology (UEG), and Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature on behalf of the European Association for Endoscopic Surgery (EAES). This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution‐NonCommercial‐NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any me- dium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non‐commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.
Identifier
10.1002/ueg2.70224
Subjects
Robotic surgery
Visceral surgery
Gastrointestinal surgery
Training
Education
Curriculum
Assessment
Certification
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
e70224
Date Publish Online
2026-06-19