Introduction: One of the most significant challenges nowadays is to educate and predict the predispositions of young surgeons taking into consideration that every ability has its own learning curve.
Aim: To determine the influence of selected factors and examine the shape and the length of the learning curve in performing simple tasks on an endoscopic simulator.
Material and methods: Twenty students took part in 4 training sessions with a one-week break between sessions. They were training 12 min and performed three tasks at every session on the endoscopic simulator. To identify whether selected factors influence the time of completing tasks, the participants were asked to fill in questionnaires. All participants also completed the Minnesota Manual Dexterity Test (MMDT) to assess hand-eye coordination.
Results: Our research reveals that regardless of activities performed in free time, the shape of the learning curve was logarithmic. Improvement after the fourth session ranged from 50% to 75%. Performing specific activities in the free time did not influence the results achieved on the simulator. No statistically significant correlation between MMDT results and the time to accomplish each task was found.
Conclusions: This study has shown that the length of the learning curve of performing simple tasks is quite short and the shape is logarithmic. It suggests that more complex exercises should be included in the training programme.
Keywords: endoscope; learning curve; surgical resident training; training simulator.
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