Procurement Update: Cadaveric Simulation
Health Education England are currently engaging in a procurement process, to commission 3-5 year contracts for the delivery of cadaveric simulation courses in the East of England.
The ITT is now live on the system here: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/08203c52-43a4-4424-8b30-6393d8e52ad4
The deadline for applications is strictly 25th January 2021
Please be advised that HEE employees cannot directly communicate with any potential bidders during the tendering process.
Surgical trainees in EoE rated the fidelity of cadaveric material 9.3/10 on average (comparing to real life experience) and pre-course skills confidence rating was 5.45/10 compared to 8.1/10 post cadaveric training.
Trainee testimonies:
General surgical simulation days have enabled senior trainees to act up as future trainers in junior grade procedures such as laparoscopic cholecystectomy and appendicectomy. I've found that ST7s and ST8s in particular have developed their leadership skills using the simulators in training junior registrars.
Cadaveric simulation is of vital importance in my training as a surgeon. The consultant led service changes in surgery mean that junior trainees are less likely to get as much operating experience as they would have 10 years ago. Cadaveric simulation bridges this training deficit, and in fact, enhances training by providing a training scenario that is as close to real life as possible. It also removes the time pressured environment of the NHS operating theatre which often reduces surgical opportunities for trainees. For a surgeon, it is clear that these practical skills can't purely be learnt in a book, and so cadaveric simulation can also act as a stepping stone from the book to the theatre. From attending a course that uses cadaveric simulation, the trainees can be more confident in performing procedures in real life and consultants can have more confidence that their trainee knows the steps of the operation at hand.
I attended the Transplant Course and the Trauma Course, these 2 days have provided me with my current limited experience of transplant and trauma in my ST3 training and are the only procedural activities I have linked to these 2 mandatory topics on my ISCP. They have improved my understanding of anatomy, tissue handling and management of specific infrequent but all important transplant/trauma situations. In addition to providing me with confidence during trauma calls, they have also been relevant to my upper GI and emergency surgery rotations in these respects. The cadaver and faculty:trainee ratio is excellent. I could not have booked 2 more useful courses and have found these among the highlights of my ST3 training year.