Feasibility, effectiveness and transferability of a novel mastery-based virtual reality robotic training platform for general surgery residents

Background The annual number of robotic surgical procedures is on the rise. Robotic surgery requires unique skills compared to other surgical approaches. Simulation allows basic robot skill acquisition and enhances patient safety. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, effectiveness, and transferability of a mastery-based curriculum using a new virtual reality (VR) robotic simulator for surgery resident training. Methods Nineteen PGY2s and 22 PGY4s were enrolled. Residents completed a pretest and posttest consisting of five VR and three previously validated inanimate tasks. Training included practicing 33 VR tasks until a total score ≥ 90% (“mastery”) was achieved using automated metrics (time, economy of motion). Inanimate performance was evaluated by two trained, blinded raters using video review metrics (time, errors, and modified OSATS). Outcomes were defined as: curriculum feasibility (completion rate, training time, repetitions), training effectiveness (pre/post training skill improvement), and skill transferability (skill transfer to validated inanimate drills). Wilcoxon signed-rank and Mann–Whitney U tests were used; median (IQR) reported. Results Thirty-four of 41 residents (83%) achieved mastery on all 33 VR tasks; median training time was 7 h (IQR: 5′26″–8′52″). Pretest vs. post-test performance improved (all p