The Pan Am Clinic Foundation supported the establishment of the Pan Am Surgical Skills Training Centre that houses state-of-the-art virtual arthroscopic trainers, muscle, bone and joint models and access to cadaveric specimens. This training centre will be integrated as part of the teleconferencing system at the Pan Am Clinic to further enhance teaching capabilities within the clinic and to sites all over the world.
Effective and continuous development and evaluation of surgical competence is an increasingly relevant aspect of surgical education and patient safety. Presently, an orthopaedic surgical residents’ experience is limited to an annual arthroscopic skills workshop and some degree of participation in surgical procedures under the supervision of an experienced surgeon. These opportunities are gradually becoming fewer as the complexity of surgical cases increases and available operating room time decreases.
This facility enables residents to practice their skills on a computer simulator, synthetic bone, or actual human and animal specimens. Research in other surgical areas has proven this type of training is transferable to skills applied in the operating room and ultimately increases patient safety and positive surgical outcomes. The benefits of the Pan Am Surgical Skills Centre are not limited to residents, as surgeons of all experience levels can refine existing procedures or learn and develop new techniques.