BACKGROUND: Although vascular skills are important to general surgeons, vascular surgery has become a separate specialty, and therefore, there may be an erosion of vascular skills acquired by general surgical trainees. The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable and valid comprehensive vascular skills assessment (CVSA) of both knowledge and technical skills. METHODS: Twenty-four of 38 general surgical residents at the University of British Columbia completed a two-part CVSA consisting of a written examination and a series of 4 technical stations in a skills laboratory. Technical performance was rated using validated scales. RESULTS: The mean overall CVSA score was 50%. The CVSA demonstrated construct validity, with improvement in scores with increasing postgraduate year level (P = .01). The overall reliability (Cronbach's alpha) was .90. CONCLUSIONS: The CVSA developed in this study is a comprehensive assessment of vascular skills that is both valid and reliable. It offers an objective and feasible assessment of general surgical trainees' vascular skills.
BACKGROUND: Although vascular skills are important to general surgeons, vascular surgery has become a separate specialty, and therefore, there may be an erosion of vascular skills acquired by general surgical trainees. The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable and valid comprehensive vascular skills assessment (CVSA) of both knowledge and technical skills. METHODS: Twenty-four of 38 general surgical residents at the University of British Columbia completed a two-part CVSA consisting of a written examination and a series of 4 technical stations in a skills laboratory. Technical performance was rated using validated scales. RESULTS: The mean overall CVSA score was 50%. The CVSA demonstrated construct validity, with improvement in scores with increasing postgraduate year level (P = .01). The overall reliability (Cronbach's alpha) was .90. CONCLUSIONS: The CVSA developed in this study is a comprehensive assessment of vascular skills that is both valid and reliable. It offers an objective and feasible assessment of general surgical trainees' vascular skills.
Authors: Paula Clifford; Natasha Melfi; John Bogdanske; Elizabeth J Johnson; James Kehler; Szczepan W Baran Journal: J Am Assoc Lab Anim Sci Date: 2013-11 Impact factor: 1.232
Authors: Philipe N Khalil; Axel Kleespies; Markus Rentsch; Wolfgang E Thasler; Karl-Walter Jauch; Christiane J Bruns Journal: BMC Res Notes Date: 2010-07-13