Residents Learn the Art of Open Surgery

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Laparoscopy, a surgery performed through a small incision, is changing the way today’s residents experience surgeries. With many more procedures being done laparoscopically, they don’t experience as much open surgery as in the past (despite this being an important skill surgeons need to have). Because of this problem, the Swedish Hospital Surgery Residency program director, Dr. Emmett McGuire contacted RVU to learn more about our Surgery Simulation Center and the cut suit.

Anthony LaPorta, MD, FACS, Professor of Clinical Surgery, and Michael Tieman, MD, Chair & Professor of Specialty Medicine, welcomed the residents and, along with Dr. McGuire, performed an open appendectomy and a major abdominal case (specifically, a colon injury as the result from a mass casualty event) using cut suits. Dr. Tieman noted, “One of the benefits of working with the cut suit is that surgeons are able to discuss various possible situations and outcomes without being worried about getting the patient out of anesthesia. Another benefit is that the surgeon can allow the residents to make mistakes, which will [ideally] help prevent those mistakes from happening later.” The cut suit is capable of repeated surgeries and, with positive feedback from the program director and residents, it is likely that this collaboration will continue with future events.

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