Orthopaedic Residents' Transfer of Knee Arthroscopic Abilities from the Simulator to the Operating Room

INTRODUCTION: The ultimate goal for any surgical simulation program is to prove the capability of transferring the skills learned to real-life surgical scenarios. We designed an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy (APM) training program and sought to determine its ability to transfer skills to real patients. METHODS: Eleven junior orthopaedic residents and three expert knee surgeons were included. A low-fidelity knee simulator was used. Trainees had two baseline assessments of completing APM on a supervised real patient and on the simulator, measured using the Arthroscopic Surgical Skill Evaluation Tool (ASSET). After baseline, the trainees completed an APM training program and had a final evaluation of proficiency on the simulator and in real patients. Experts were also assessed for comparison. Statistical analysis was performed, assuming nonparametric behavior of variables. RESULTS: All trainees improved from a base score of 14 points in real patients and 10 points on the simulator to a final score of 39 points and 36 points, respectively (P < 0.01). The final trainee simulator score did not differ from experts on the simulator and was lower in real patients (36 versus 39 points, respectively, P ≤ 0.01), which resulted in a 92% transfer ratio for the simulator. DISCUSSION: Simulated training of APM in orthopaedic residents using a low-fidelity knee simulator proved to not only improve simulated proficiency but also successfully transfer skills to a real clinical scenario with a high model transfer ratio. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level II (Prospective Cohort Study).