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A pilot project evaluation of a novel heads-up viewing system compared to desktop microscopes commonly used for ophthalmic simulation

Eye volume 37, pages 2830–2831 (2023)Cite this article

Subjects

To evaluate the DRV system compared to the STEMI microscope through real-world comparisons, West of Scotland ophthalmic trainees were asked to complete a set task (corneal incision and suturing) using both systems and to evaluate them based on initial impressions, system-specific images, usability and task specific evaluations, using a 5-point Likert scale (1: very poor to 5: very good). Scores were compared using Wilcoxon signed ranks test. 20 trainees participated in the study (8 female, 12 male) between January and July 2022. The DRV scored more highly for system-specific images (19/20 DRV vs 15/20 STEMI; p = 0.00072), usability (40/50 DRV vs 31/50 STEMI; p = 0.00016) and task specific evaluation (21/25 DRV vs 20/25 STEMI; p = 0.00128). Free text comments reported more ergonomic design with a wider field of view and greater supervisor potential to be significant benefits of the DRV system. Ease of viewing surgical tasks in 3D without additional glasses/headset was also appreciated, but without the high cost of theatre-based microscope equipment [5].

We have shown in this simple pilot study that the DRV system is effective as a viewing aid to ophthalmic microsurgical simulation and preferred by our trainees to the currently used STEMI desktop microscopes. Although not portable, the ergonomics and supervision potential make the DRV an attractive addition to enhance ophthalmic simulation activity or skill transfer courses in the future.

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Fig. 1: Photo illustrating viewing equipment currently used for ophthalmic simulation in Glasgow.

References

  1. Royal College of Ophthalmologists. Simulation 2022 [Accessed August 2022; Available from: https://www.rcophth.ac.uk/training/simulation/].

  2. Lockington D, Saleh GM, Spencer AF, Ferris J Cost and time resourcing for ophthalmic simulation in the UK: a Royal College of Ophthalmologists’ National Survey of regional simulation leads in 2021. Eye. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-021-01796-4.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tennent Institute of Ophthalmology, Gartnavel General Hospital, 1053 Great Western Road, Glasgow, G12 0YN, UK

    Jennifer Hind, Chloe Shipton & David Lockington

Authors
  1. Jennifer Hind
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  2. Chloe Shipton
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  3. David Lockington
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Contributions

DL had the initial idea. JH and CS organised the training event and drafted the article. DL revised the article and provided senior support. All authors agree with the final submitted version.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to David Lockington.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Hind, J., Shipton, C. & Lockington, D. A pilot project evaluation of a novel heads-up viewing system compared to desktop microscopes commonly used for ophthalmic simulation. Eye 37, 2830–2831 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-023-02414-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41433-023-02414-1

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