Industrial psychologists at the University of Aberdeen have been awarded £83,000 for a new two year research project to develop a taxonomy of surgeons' non-technical skills. These are the critical thinking and team work skills which are required for effective surgical practice in the operating theatre.
The project is jointly funded by the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and NHS Education for Scotland. The study will be co-directed by Professor Rhona Flin, Professor of Applied Psychology, University of Aberdeen; Mr Simon Paterson-Brown, consultant surgeon, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Dr Nikki Maran, consultant anaesthetist, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and the Scottish Clinical Simulation Centre.
Professor Flin and her team at the Industrial Psychology Research Centre have carried out previous research projects to develop taxonomies of non-technical skills for European airline pilots and for anaesthetists, which are now used for training and professional development.
Mr Paterson-Brown said: "This new project underlines the importance now being placed on surgeons' non-technical skills in the peri-operative care of surgical patients."