According to a new study, surgeons performing knee surgery don’t become proficient at their trade until after they have performed 150 operations.
This is understandable in the sense that “practice makes perfect.” It’s bad news, however, for the first 150 patients who have the misfortune of being the “practice” for the new surgeon.
One solution seems obvious to me: Require more surgeons to practice their trade in medical simulators before being allowed to operate on a person.
To those who say “It’s not realistic,” I’d remind you that every pilot flying a plane for a major airline has been trained using simulators.
In fact, in many instances, pilots don’t actually fly a real plane until their first flight. In other words, all of their training is done via simulators.
The second solution is greater use of robotic devices.
Both trends — increasing use of medical simulators and robotics — will grow in the near future.
Interested in other healthcare-related articles by healthcare futurist Jack Uldrich? Check out these recent posts:
Why the Future of Healthcare Will Require Unlearning
Top Ten Future Healthcare Trends
