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General Surgery Residency
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Surgical Skills and Simulation Training

skills labThe General Surgery Residency has a robust Surgical Skills and Simulation Training Curriculum. Monthly educational sessions are designed to provide skills training with expert faculty in a low stress environment. These training sessions are predominantly held at the Surgical Training and Research Lab core facility in Case Western Reserve University. Inanimate, animate, cadaveric, and live animal models are used for training as appropriate. The training sessions include:

  • GI Anastomosis
  • Vascular Anastomosis
  • Advanced Trauma Skills
  • Central Venous Catheterization
  • Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) Training
  • Endoscopic Training
  • Neck Ultrasound Skills
  • Feeding Tubes and Stomas
  • Live Porcine Surgery
  • Pediatric Trauma
  • Anorectal Procedures
  • Robotic Curriculum

Surgical Expertise at University Hospitals/Case Western Reserve University

The Department of Surgery is a testing center for various surgical techniques, including our Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) testing center. In 2014, The Department of Surgery became a designated test center for Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery (FES).

Expert Training in Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS)

University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center is a designated test center for Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS). The FLS program is a comprehensive, web-based education module that includes a hands-on skills training component and assessment tool designed to teach the physiology, fundamental knowledge and technical skills required in basic laparoscopic surgery.

FLS was designed for surgical residents, fellows and practicing physicians to learn and practice laparoscopic skills, which then allows participants to definitively measure and document those skills. The FLS program is a joint educational offering of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and also is a requirement for board certification by the American Board of Surgery (ABS).

Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery Curriculum

Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery (FES) Training

FES was designed for medical and surgical residents, fellows, practicing general surgeons, gastroenterologists and other physicians to learn and test basic endoscopic skills required to form a foundation in the practice of flexible endoscopy. The American Board of Surgery now requires FES as part of the ABS Flexible Endoscopy Curriculum. Surgeons graduating residency in or after the 2017-2018 academic year must complete the ABS Flexible Endoscopy Curriculum to be eligible for board certification in general surgery.

Fundamentals of Endoscopic Surgery Curriculum

Fundamental Use of Surgical Energy (FUSE) Expertise

Most recently, we became a test center for the Fundamental Use of Surgical Energy (FUSE) program through Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES). FUSE is a program designed to meet the need for increased education and training in the principles and properties of operating electrosurgical instruments safely. FUSE was designed to certify that a successful candidate has demonstrated the knowledge fundamental to the safe use of surgical energy-based devices in the operating room, endoscopic suite and other procedural areas. The educational module consists of a web-based multimedia presentation of didactic content which is available, free-of-charge online at SAGES Fuse.