Training the trainees in robotic surgery – a pilot scheme in the United Kingdom
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background
Training in robotic colorectal surgery is predominantly confined to senior trainees and consultants. The lack of robotic training of the general surgical specialist trainee (ST) in the formative stages of training has led to widespread discontent among them. This paper describes a pilot scheme to establish a robotic training programme for general surgical STs in a district general hospital.
Methods
Six STs were enrolled between May 2023 and October 2023. A training programme was established using the CMR Surgical Versius robotic system, which consisted of online modules, a first assist course, performance-tracked virtual simulation, basic surgical skills assessment, and live operating. The programme was evaluated using the Royal College of Surgeons Participant Feedback Questionnaire (Likert scale 1–5).
Results
Trainees ranging from ST4 to ST8 took a median of 4.5 days (IQR 2) to complete 16 performance-tracked virtual simulation tasks. There was a significant variance in the number of attempts to pass each task (p < 0.0001), with STs finding endoscope control, suturing and knot-tying the hardest tasks to pass. There was a significant variance between the STs in the number of attempts to pass all the tasks (p = 0.02), with the ST4 trainee performing significantly better than the ST7 and ST8 trainees (p < 0.05). The STs participated in 43 operations (anterior resection = 13, abdominoperineal resection = 4, right hemicolectomy = 10, loop colostomy = 1 and cholecystectomy = 15). There were no complications related to training. Feedback on the programme was positive with a median score of 5 (IQR 0.75) for all sections of the questionnaire.
Conclusions
A structured robotic training programme to democratise robotic surgical training, especially among junior trainees who may not have prior laparoscopic surgical experience is safe and feasible. Replicating similar schemes in other hospitals may improve robotic access and training for STs.
Training in robotic colorectal surgery is predominantly confined to senior trainees and consultants. The lack of robotic training of the general surgical specialist trainee (ST) in the formative stages of training has led to widespread discontent among them. This paper describes a pilot scheme to establish a robotic training programme for general surgical STs in a district general hospital.
Methods
Six STs were enrolled between May 2023 and October 2023. A training programme was established using the CMR Surgical Versius robotic system, which consisted of online modules, a first assist course, performance-tracked virtual simulation, basic surgical skills assessment, and live operating. The programme was evaluated using the Royal College of Surgeons Participant Feedback Questionnaire (Likert scale 1–5).
Results
Trainees ranging from ST4 to ST8 took a median of 4.5 days (IQR 2) to complete 16 performance-tracked virtual simulation tasks. There was a significant variance in the number of attempts to pass each task (p < 0.0001), with STs finding endoscope control, suturing and knot-tying the hardest tasks to pass. There was a significant variance between the STs in the number of attempts to pass all the tasks (p = 0.02), with the ST4 trainee performing significantly better than the ST7 and ST8 trainees (p < 0.05). The STs participated in 43 operations (anterior resection = 13, abdominoperineal resection = 4, right hemicolectomy = 10, loop colostomy = 1 and cholecystectomy = 15). There were no complications related to training. Feedback on the programme was positive with a median score of 5 (IQR 0.75) for all sections of the questionnaire.
Conclusions
A structured robotic training programme to democratise robotic surgical training, especially among junior trainees who may not have prior laparoscopic surgical experience is safe and feasible. Replicating similar schemes in other hospitals may improve robotic access and training for STs.
Date Issued
2025-08-08
Date Acceptance
2025-07-24
Citation
BMC Medical Education, 2025, 25
ISSN
1472-6920
Publisher
BMC
Journal / Book Title
BMC Medical Education
Volume
25
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2025. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
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Publication Status
Published
Article Number
1152
Date Publish Online
2025-08-08