Reliability of a revised NOTECHS scale for use in surgical teams.

Full Abstract

BACKGROUND:
Recent developments in the surgical literature highlight the need for assessment of nontechnical skills in surgery. We report a revision of the NOn-TECHnical Skills (NOTECHS) scale of the aviation industry for use in surgery and detailed analysis on its reliability.

METHODS:
The original NOTECHS scale assesses (1) Cooperation, (2) Leadership and Managerial Skills, (3) Situation Awareness and Vigilance, and (4) Decision Making. We added a Communication and Interaction dimension and adapted all subscales for use in surgical context. Reliability was assessed in simulation-based training for trainee clinicians.

RESULTS:
Satisfactory reliability (Cronbach's alpha) was obtained (1) across professional groups and trainers and trainees, (2) in separate analyses for trainers and trainees, (3) in successive administrations of the scale, and (4) in surgical, anaesthetic and nursing groups analyzed separately. In the operating department practitioners group, Situation Awareness and Vigilance and Cooperation and Team Skills exhibited lower reliability.

CONCLUSIONS:
Assessment of surgical nontechnical skills is becoming a training priority. The present evidence suggests that the revised NOTECHS scale exhibits good reliability. Further empirical research should assess the validity of the scale.

Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills

Author information

Author/s: Sevdalis, Nick (N); Davis, Rachel (R); Koutantji, Mary (M); Undre, Shabnam (S); Darzi, Ara (A); Vincent, Charles A (CA);

Affiliation: Department of Bio-Surgery and Surgical Technology, Imperial College London, London, UK. n.sevdalis@imperial.ac.uk

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: American journal of surgery (Am J Surg), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-Aug; vol 196 (issue 2) : pp 184-90

Dates: Created 2008/07/21; Completed 2008/08/07;

PMID: 18558392, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Clinical Competence
Computer Simulation
Humans
Outcome and Process Assessment (Health Care)

Outcome and Process Assessment (Health Care)
Patient Care Team - organization & administration
Reproducibility of Results
Surgery - education

These are the highest related articles currently in the database:

See 100+ related articles.