Role of simulators, educational programs, and nontechnical skills in anesthesia resident selection, education, and competency assessment.

Theoretical knowledge for anesthesia residents requires learning from a variety of sources. Technical skills are important and simulators are being used in many centers. Anesthesia nontechnical skills, those are, cognitive, interpersonal, and decision making, may not be uniformly acquired during clinical training and may need to be specifically taught and evaluated. Clinical competency committees usually evaluate the performance of every resident on a 6-month basis; however, a more objective test should be used. Training is evolving and higher standards in this field should create safer anesthesiologists. Simulator-based education and testing and assessment of nontechnical skills should be a priority in anesthesia residency programs.