Is mental training suitable for teaching a surgical procedure to students? A single-center study using a hernia model.

purposeNew methods of teaching surgical skills are in demand. Mental skills training (MST) has been proven effective in the training of surgeons. However, research on medical students is still rare. This explorative study investigates whether a minimalist form of MST can support surgical performance on a hernia model in medical students in a way comparable to students trained using a conventional 'see one, do one' approach.

methodsA novel inexpensive benchtop training model for abdominal wall hernias has been developed. Medical students were randomized into an 'See one, do one' and a 'See one' + MST group. Both groups received the same theoretical instructions, after which a tutor demonstrated the operation on the model. While the first group received training in MST afterwards, the 'See one, do one' group was trained using the benchtop model. Subsequently, both groups performed surgery on the model. Their performance was videotaped and evaluated by experienced surgeons.

resultsA total of 44 medical students took part in the study. The 'See one, do one' group performed significantly better in the professional examination, although the consistency of the stitching was comparable between the two groups and showed no statistically significant differences.

conclusion'See one' + MST group alone without practical training did not result in comparable performance as the 'See one, do one' approach in our study. The MST group performed inferiorly across most objective metrics. While this suggest that MST in isolation may not be sufficient for teaching complex procedures to medical students, it highlights the importance of practical exposure. The potential benefit of combining MST with hands-on training should be investigated in future studies, but cannot be inferred from the current data.