Development of a knowledge, skills, and attitudes framework for training in laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

BACKGROUND The implementation of duty-hour restrictions and a heightened awareness of patient safety has changed resident education and training. A new focus has been placed on high-yield training programs and simulation training has naturally grown to fill this need. METHODS This article discusses the development of a training framework, knowledge, skills, and attitudes, and the design of a surgical simulation curriculum. Five residents were recruited for a pilot study of the curriculum. RESULTS A successful framework for curriculum development was implemented using laparoscopic cholecystectomy as the example. The curriculum consisted of classroom and virtual reality simulation training and was completed in 3.1 to 4.8 hours. CONCLUSIONS The current curricula that have been developed for surgical education cover the breadth of a surgical residency well. This curriculum went beyond these curricula and developed a structured framework for surgical training, a method that can be applied to any procedure.