BACKGROUND: The Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery™ (FES) program consists of online materials and didactic and skills-based tests. All components were designed to measure the skills and knowledge required to perform safe flexible endoscopy. The purpose of this multicenter study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the hands-on component of the FES examination, and to establish the pass score. METHODS: Expert endoscopists identified the critical skill set required for flexible endoscopy. They were then modeled in a virtual reality simulator (GI Mentor™ II, Simbionix™ Ltd., Airport City, Israel) to create five tasks and metrics. Scores were designed to measure both speed and precision. Validity evidence was assessed by correlating performance with self-reported endoscopic experience (surgeons and gastroenterologists [GIs]). Internal consistency of each test task was assessed using Cronbach's alpha. Test-retest reliability was determined by having the same participant perform the test a second time and comparing their scores. Passing scores were determined by a contrasting groups methodology and use of receiver operating characteristic curves. RESULTS: A total of 160 participants (17 % GIs) performed the simulator test. Scores on the five tasks showed good internal consistency reliability and all had significant correlations with endoscopic experience. Total FES scores correlated 0.73, with participants' level of endoscopic experience providing evidence of their validity, and their internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha) was 0.82. Test-retest reliability was assessed in 11 participants, and the intraclass correlation was 0.85. The passing score was determined and is estimated to have a sensitivity (true positive rate) of 0.81 and a 1-specificity (false positive rate) of 0.21. CONCLUSIONS: The FES hands-on skills test examines the basic procedural components required to perform safe flexible endoscopy. It meets rigorous standards of reliability and validity required for high-stakes examinations, and, together with the knowledge component, may help contribute to the definition and determination of competence in endoscopy.
BACKGROUND: The Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery™ (FES) program consists of online materials and didactic and skills-based tests. All components were designed to measure the skills and knowledge required to perform safe flexible endoscopy. The purpose of this multicenter study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the hands-on component of the FES examination, and to establish the pass score. METHODS: Expert endoscopists identified the critical skill set required for flexible endoscopy. They were then modeled in a virtual reality simulator (GI Mentor™ II, Simbionix™ Ltd., Airport City, Israel) to create five tasks and metrics. Scores were designed to measure both speed and precision. Validity evidence was assessed by correlating performance with self-reported endoscopic experience (surgeons and gastroenterologists [GIs]). Internal consistency of each test task was assessed using Cronbach's alpha. Test-retest reliability was determined by having the same participant perform the test a second time and comparing their scores. Passing scores were determined by a contrasting groups methodology and use of receiver operating characteristic curves. RESULTS: A total of 160 participants (17 % GIs) performed the simulator test. Scores on the five tasks showed good internal consistency reliability and all had significant correlations with endoscopic experience. Total FES scores correlated 0.73, with participants' level of endoscopic experience providing evidence of their validity, and their internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha) was 0.82. Test-retest reliability was assessed in 11 participants, and the intraclass correlation was 0.85. The passing score was determined and is estimated to have a sensitivity (true positive rate) of 0.81 and a 1-specificity (false positive rate) of 0.21. CONCLUSIONS: The FES hands-on skills test examines the basic procedural components required to perform safe flexible endoscopy. It meets rigorous standards of reliability and validity required for high-stakes examinations, and, together with the knowledge component, may help contribute to the definition and determination of competence in endoscopy.
Authors: Ajit K Sachdeva; Jo Buyske; Gary L Dunnington; Hilary A Sanfey; John D Mellinger; Daniel J Scott; Richard Satava; Gerald M Fried; Lenworth M Jacobs; Karyl J Burns Journal: Curr Probl Surg Date: 2011-12 Impact factor: 1.909
Authors: Melina C Vassiliou; Pepa A Kaneva; Benjamin K Poulose; Brian J Dunkin; Jeffrey M Marks; Riadh Sadik; Gideon Sroka; Mehran Anvari; Klaus Thaler; Gina L Adrales; Jeffrey W Hazey; Jenifer R Lightdale; Vic Velanovich; Lee L Swanstrom; John D Mellinger; Gerald M Fried Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2010-01-29 Impact factor: 4.584
Authors: James G Bittner; James E Coverdill; Toufic Imam; Adeline M Deladisma; Michael A Edwards; John D Mellinger Journal: J Surg Educ Date: 2008 Nov-Dec Impact factor: 2.891
Authors: Benjamin K Poulose; Melina C Vassiliou; Brian J Dunkin; John D Mellinger; Robert D Fanelli; Jose M Martinez; Jeffrey W Hazey; Lelan F Sillin; Conor P Delaney; Vic Velanovich; Gerald M Fried; James R Korndorffer; Jeffrey M Marks Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2013-10-08 Impact factor: 4.584
Authors: Melina C Vassiliou; Pepa A Kaneva; Benjamin K Poulose; Brian J Dunkin; Jeffrey M Marks; Riadh Sadik; Gideon Sroka; Mehran Anvari; Klaus Thaler; Gina L Adrales; Jeffrey W Hazey; Jenifer R Lightdale; Vic Velanovich; Lee L Swanstrom; John D Mellinger; Gerald M Fried Journal: Am J Surg Date: 2010-01 Impact factor: 2.565
Authors: Jonathan Cohen; Seth A Cohen; Kinjal C Vora; Xiaonan Xue; J Steven Burdick; Simmy Bank; Edmund J Bini; Henry Bodenheimer; Maurice Cerulli; Hans Gerdes; David Greenwald; Frank Gress; Irwin Grosman; Robert Hawes; Gerard Mullin; Gerard Mullen; Felice Schnoll-Sussman; Anthony Starpoli; Peter Stevens; Scott Tenner; Gerald Villanueva Journal: Gastrointest Endosc Date: 2006-09 Impact factor: 9.427
Authors: Adam V Haycock; Philippa Youd; Paul Bassett; Brian P Saunders; Paris Tekkis; Siwan Thomas-Gibson Journal: Gastrointest Endosc Date: 2009-06-25 Impact factor: 9.427
Authors: Carmen L Mueller; Pepa Kaneva; Gerald M Fried; John D Mellinger; Jeffrey M Marks; Brian J Dunkin; Kent van Sickle; Melina C Vassiliou Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2015-07-03 Impact factor: 4.584
Authors: Tomoko Mizota; Nicholas E Anton; Elizabeth M Huffman; Michael J Guzman; Frederick Lane; Jennifer N Choi; Dimitrios Stefanidis Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2019-05-17 Impact factor: 4.584
Authors: E Matthew Ritter; Zachary A Taylor; Kathryn R Wolf; Brenton R Franklin; Sarah B Placek; James R Korndorffer; Aimee K Gardner Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2017-07-11 Impact factor: 4.584
Authors: Aimee K Gardner; Daniel J Scott; Ross E Willis; Kent Van Sickle; Michael S Truitt; John Uecker; Kimberly M Brown; Jeffrey M Marks; Brian J Dunkin Journal: Surg Endosc Date: 2016-06-10 Impact factor: 4.584