Do you remember Dr. Dean Edell? He was a radio doctor who was trained as an eye surgeon, and he would say that manual dexterity and good technique were everything for a surgeon.
The "If I don't practice one day, I know it; two days, the critics know it; three days, the public knows it" quote is from Jascha Heifetz, a virtuoso violinist. :)
Thanks for the links, definitely to the point. I do wonder to what they attribute the decrease in costs. ETA: Ah, listening to the audio now.
There are surprisingly few studies about medical outcomes, partly I think because even now, much of that information is not in a nicely accessible digital format. For example, one might think that there are a lot of evidence-based studies about the best ways to install hip replacements, but not really. I do know that there are a lot of training efforts focused on improving surgeons' ability at fine motor control and the actual procedure execution.
I don't know about studies, but as someone who performs surgery, a *lot* of it comes down to dexterity and physical skill.
Ultimately, that and the confidence are the most important attributes. Medical knowledge is important, yeah, but it's a far distant third. You need to be confident (usually bordering on arrogant) enough to say 'Yeah, I'm going to cut this living thing open, shove my hand in its abdomen, pull stuff out until I find what I need, and sew it back up, and not freak out if something unexpected happens in the process.'
(As an anecdote, when I was learning surgical technique I did all of my hobby embroidery for a year using thumb forceps and needle drivers. It was a pain, but it meant that by the time I got to clinics my suturing skills were rock solid....)
An anecdote in a book I read long ago had a teaching surgeon admonishing his students to darn their own socks or whatever other sewing practice they could possibly muster. It sounded like there was a lot of desperately needed practicing on cadavers before being allowed anywhere near a live patient.
Tangential: Many links have been sent to me over the years claiming that surgeons who are also videogamers show greater performance of the "practical" aspect.
We had such an article on the wall of the office kitchen when I worked facilitating the collection and analysis of surgical data.
how much of the success of a surgeon, as measured in patient outcomes, can be attributed to a surgeon's practical skill?
I can't answer this question, but I can tell you that the American College of Surgeons wants to track success as a surgeon as a means of reducing costs (i.e. patient morbidities and malpractice insurance rates).
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Thanks for the links, definitely to the point. I do wonder to what they attribute the decrease in costs. ETA: Ah, listening to the audio now.
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Ultimately, that and the confidence are the most important attributes. Medical knowledge is important, yeah, but it's a far distant third. You need to be confident (usually bordering on arrogant) enough to say 'Yeah, I'm going to cut this living thing open, shove my hand in its abdomen, pull stuff out until I find what I need, and sew it back up, and not freak out if something unexpected happens in the process.'
(As an anecdote, when I was learning surgical technique I did all of my hobby embroidery for a year using thumb forceps and needle drivers. It was a pain, but it meant that by the time I got to clinics my suturing skills were rock solid....)
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An anecdote in a book I read long ago had a teaching surgeon admonishing his students to darn their own socks or whatever other sewing practice they could possibly muster. It sounded like there was a lot of desperately needed practicing on cadavers before being allowed anywhere near a live patient.
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And thank you for the confirmation; kind of what I figured.
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how much of the success of a surgeon, as measured in patient outcomes, can be attributed to a surgeon's practical skill?
I can't answer this question, but I can tell you that the American College of Surgeons wants to track success as a surgeon as a means of reducing costs (i.e. patient morbidities and malpractice insurance rates).
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