The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) has opened a new state-of-the-art clinical skills unit, marking the second phase of the College’s Eagle Project which will provide the UK with one of the most advanced surgical teaching facilities in the world.
The new facilities include a keyhole surgery unit teaching the latest techniques and a unit where the entire range of simulation techniques will be taught, from simple plastic models on which trainees can practise stitching to a complete state of the art simulated operating theatre suite. As the Chief Medical Officer Professor Liam Donaldson pointed out, surgeons who have trained on simulators are twice as fast and twice as accurate as those who have not. The benefit of simulation can now be extended to other vital members of the surgical team, including anaesthetists, radiologists, physicians, cardiologists and theatre nurses. The team participate together in operating theatre emergency scenarios, ensuring they are better equipped to deal with similar incidents when they occur hospital operating theatres. The theatre consists of a virtual operating theatre and an adjacent control room, separated by one way mirrors. Critical incidents and major disaster scenarios, such as road traffic accidents and life-threatening anaesthetic or surgical complications can be set up while experts observe and provide feedback to the theatre team. The operations and interaction between the surgical team and tutors are recorded and later analysed at debriefing sessions.
