Effects of a Virtual Pointer on Trainees' Cognitive Load and Communication Efficiency in Surgical Training.

We investigated the cognitive load effect of a trainer providing surgical instruction by pointing/drawing over laparoscopic video to a trainee. Results showed that while cognitive load is higher overall with the use of the instructional system, there is a decrease by the second experience of being instructed by the Virtual Pointer. Further analysis showed that trainees were more likely to perform the surgical task and watch/listen to the trainer's instruction at the same time when the instructional system was used.

Perceived Usefulness and Acceptance of Communication Support System in Laparoscopic Surgery.

In laparoscopic surgery, senior surgeons spend great efforts to convey knowledge to their trainees. Any misinterpretation of the instructions may lead to inevitable errors that have a great impact on patient safety. To support efficient knowledge sharing, we design a communication support system, Virtual Pointer, to convey trainers' gestures directly onto the laparoscopic video for trainees to see.

Improving Common Ground Development in Surgical Training through Talk and Action.

In surgical training, senior surgeons and residents rely on more than just verbal utterances to share information and coordinate their work practices - their actions also contribute to and shape the development of common ground. However, the function of actions in the grounding process and how that is interdependent with verbal utterances have not been made explicit. We have investigated actions and utterances using a dialogue act coding scheme that highlights the communicative functions of each act towards common ground development during a laparoscopic surgery.

A virtual pointer to support the adoption of professional vision in laparoscopic training.

Purpose: To assess a virtual pointer in supporting surgical trainees' development of professional vision in laparoscopic surgery.

Methods: We developed a virtual pointing and telestration system utilizing the Microsoft Kinect movement sensor as an overlay for any imagine system. Training with the application was compared to a standard condition, i.

The bit doesn't fit: Evaluation of a commercial activity-tracker at slower walking speeds.

Accelerometer-based commercial activity trackers are a low-cost and convenient method for monitoring and assessing health measures such as gait. However, the accuracy of these activity trackers in slow walking conditions on a minute-by-minute basis is largely unknown. In this study, the accuracy of a hip-worn commercial activity tracker (FitBit Ultra) was examined through step counts.

Supporting Common Ground Development in the Operation Room through Information Display Systems.

Effective information sharing is crucial for clinical team coordination. Most information display systems have been designed to replace verbal communication. However, information may not be available for capture before a communication event and information needs often become clear and evident through an evolving discourse.

Comparison of tri-axial accelerometers step-count accuracy in slow walking conditions.

Accelerometers have shown great promise and popularity for monitoring gait. However, the accuracy of accelerometers for gait analysis in slow walking conditions is largely unknown. In this study, we compared the accuracy of three accelerometers recommended for gait analysis - Axivity AX3, APDM Opal, and the Actigraph wGT3X-BT, by holding the step-count algorithm constant.

A systematic review of the effect of distraction on surgeon performance: directions for operating room policy and surgical training.

Background: Distractions during surgical procedures have been linked to medical error and team inefficiency. This systematic review identifies the most common and most significant forms of distraction in order to devise guidelines for mitigating the effects of distractions in the OR.

Methods: In January 2015, a PubMed and Google Scholar search yielded 963 articles, of which 17 (2 %) either directly observed the occurrence of distractions in operating rooms or conducted a laboratory experiment to determine the effect of distraction on surgical performance.