TOTB-04: 3D PRINTING FOR AFFORDABLE LAPAROSCOPIC TRAINING
Jan-Maarten Luursema, PhD; Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands

What problem in education is addressed by this work?:
We expect our students to be well prepared for the operating room by training psychomotor skills in our skillslabs. At the same time, laparoscopic simulator technology tends to be expensive which limits access for interested individuals or resource-limited institutions. There is a need for flexible, low-cost simulator training solutions.

Describe the intervention:
Using 3D printing technology, affordable additional components, and open source software packages, we created a low cost yet fully featured laparoscopic training device (material costs around 30 USD). Using the components we developed, basically any cardboard box can be changed into a simulator. In-house developed software complements this hardware by allowing the generation of individual learning curves, contextualized by averaged local training data.

Describe how this intervention could be applied at other institutions. Please specifically comment on identified barriers that could exist and how they could be overcome:
We aim to share this technology with other institutions and individuals to lower the barrier to engage in simulator training. At the cost of a 3D printer and a soldering iron, anyone will be able to profit from- and contribute to this platform. Standardization might pose challenges, and will need to be discussed with interested parties.