1686 The Effect of 24-hour Call on Laparoscopic Skills of ObGyn Residents

Abstract

Study Objective To assess the effect of 24-hour call on the simulated laparoscopic skills of Ob/Gyn residents from a large, tertiary-care hospital in a metropolitan city. Design A standard peg transfer drill module on the Laparoscopy VR Trainer (CAE Healthcare) was used as a surrogate for surgical skills. Participants performed the simulation module three times at the start of their call and later at the completion of call. Participants also completed a short survey of basic demographics, caffeine intake and sleep over the call shift, and prior experience on the simulator. All sessions on the simulator were logged and data, including total time, average right and left path lengths, and number of dropped pegs, was extracted. Setting n/a Patients or Participants Residents of a university-based Ob/Gyn program Interventions n/a Measurements and Main Results 22 residents were recruited for the study. A total of 35 trials were performed. Participants showed improvement in all outcomes over their call shift with a significant decrease in total time required to complete the task, a significant decrease in left and right path lengths, and significantly less pegs dropped from pre to post call sessions (p .05) for any of the outcomes. Conclusion Data revealed a statistically significant improvement in post call performances across all measured variables. This was true regardless of year in residency and was not affected by amount of sleep obtained, amount of caffeine consumed, or time since last caffeine consumption. This is one of the first studies to show an improvement after a call shift. Further studies are needed to investigate the potential impact of sleep deprivation on more complex medical procedures as well as the impact of sleep deprivation on a physician's ability to diagnose, educate, and obtain informed consent.