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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2021 Mar 12;21(1):156.
doi: 10.1186/s12909-021-02590-2.

Effectivity of near-peer teaching in training of basic surgical skills - a randomized controlled trial

Zsolt Pintér  1 , Dániel Kardos  1   2 , Péter Varga  1   3 , Eszter Kopjár  1 , Anna Kovács  1 , Péter Than  4 , Szilárd Rendeki  1   5 , László Czopf  6   7 , Zsuzsanna Füzesi  8 , Ádám Tibor Schlégl  9   10
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Effectivity of near-peer teaching in training of basic surgical skills - a randomized controlled trial

Zsolt Pintér et al. BMC Med Educ. .

Abstract

Background: Near-peer teaching (NPT) is a special way of teaching where the tutor is one or more academic years ahead of the person being tutored. The literature agrees on the benefits of the method, but there are only a few publications examining its effectiveness using objective methods. The aim of our study was to examine the effectiveness of NPT in the training of basic surgical skills.

Methods: We included 60 volunteer students who participated in a 20 × 45 min long surgical skills course. Based on the results of a pre-course test, we randomly divided the students into six equal groups. All groups completed the same curriculum, with three groups being assisted by a NPT tutor. After the course, they completed the same test as at the beginning. The exams were recorded on anonymized videos and were blindly evaluated. The students' satisfaction was monitored using a self-administered online anonymous questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon tests.

Results: Overall, student performance improved with completion of the course (from 119.86 to 153.55 points, p < 0.01). In groups where a NPT tutor assisted, students achieved a significantly better score (37.20 vs. 30.18 points improvement, p = 0.036). The difference was prominent in surgical knotting tasks (14.73 vs. 9.30 points improvement, p < 0.01). In cases of suturing (15.90 vs. 15.46 points) and laparoscopy (7.00 vs. 4.98 points), the presence of the NPT tutor did not significantly affect development. Based on student feedback, although students positively assessed the presence of NPT, it did not significantly improve students' overall satisfaction since it was already 4,82 on a scale of 5 in the control group.

Conclusions: Overall, involving a NPT tutor had a positive impact on student development. An outstanding difference was observed in connection with knotting techniques.

Keywords: Basic surgical skills; Near-peer teaching; RCT; Surgical education; Suturing.

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Conflict of interest statement

No benefits in any form have been received or will be received from a commercial party related, directly or indirectly. The authors declare that there are no potential conflicts of interest in connection with this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Post-course exam; left – recording of the suturing practices; middle – screenshot from the record; right – laparoscopic skills practices
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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