Exploring Operating Room-Based Student Learning Experience: Perils & Pitfalls? A Narrative Literature Review

Abstract

Introduction: Operating Room (OR) is a high-pressure setting where multiple complex surgical, educational, and administrative facets interplay. While considered an essential aspect of the undergraduate curriculum and a valuable tool for cultivating an unparalleled interest and enthusiasm in the young minds of medical students, the real-life experience of the operating theatre can pose a number of challenges to be dealt with. OR-based student learning has traditionally been suboptimal owing to many reasons. Exploring such perils and pitfalls remains a high research priority in order to design structured clinical encounters within the OR setting in future.

Methods: A literature search was done through PubMed, ERIC, and Google Scholar. Keywords used were “operating room”, OR “operating theater”, AND “student learning” OR “medical students”. Following PRISMA guidelines, 1580 articles were identified, out of which 68 pertinent articles were initially selected for the literature review, and 52 articles were used for thematic analysis. The article evidence was thoroughly evaluated and analyzed, and various themes were identified.

Discussion: Operation theater-based student learning is influenced by a number of factors that likely include organizational, socio-environmental, and emotional factors and factors related to educational relevance and surgical educator. Conflicting roles of medical educators in this setting, their availability to students, confused learning objectives, the theatre environment, poor visibility of the procedure, and various emotional aspects of medical students are amongst other reasons. Although a number of studies have individually examined the role of various factors in ‘OR’ based student learning, their relative importance and influence remain partially explored. Moreover, the quality of evidence to substantiate these aspects still remains contextual with low external validity and generalizability.

Conclusions: The reasons of suboptimal student learning within OR setting are multifactorial. In depth analysis of these factors influencing OR-based student learning remains a high research priority in order to design future structured clinical encounters within OR for a more meaningful and enriched learning experience.