Grenoble (FR), April 2007 - A computerised simulator currently being tested at hospitals in France will enable trained and trainee orthopedic surgeons to hone their skills in a computer-generated environment rather than during "live" operations. Developed by an interdisciplinary team of experts through a project called Technology Enhanced Learning for Orthopaedic Surgery (TELEOS), the simulator softens the boundaries between theory and practice, taking vocational training to a new dimension.
TELEOS enables trainees to place a pin in a patient's pelvis - to rectify problems caused by disease or breakage - just by using a computer mouse. The pin is manipulated with the mouse on the computer display. It can be placed, oriented, and pushed in the body. Thus, it exactly simulates the surgeon's hand movements in the operating room. This intervention, of course, takes place without opening the body.
The TELEOS project team consists of surgeons, computer and education scientists, didacticians and psychologists.
Usually, trained and trainee surgeons gather experience in a "live" environment. They work in the operating theatre on the patient, depending strongly on the supervision of a long-experienced surgeon. Trials with TELEOS have shown that a trainee who has practised techniques with the simulator can expect less intervention when coming to grips with real-life situations in the operating theatre.
Currently, the TELEOS learning environment is being tested intensively to ascertain its added educational value. After this testing period, the plan is to introduce it in hospitals in Grenoble, France at the end of this year.
Lucile Vadcard, a team member from MeTAH, Grenoble says, "The more people are able to see the benefit of TELEOS, the better. We will keep our ears to the ground in terms of what is going on in research in education technology, so we can stay ahead. Kaleidoscope, the European Network of Excellence for Technology Enhanced Learning, will help us to do this."
