In surgical education, two of the current primary assessment tools for technical skills are the OSATS checklist and electromagnetic (EM) hand tracking. There are few bench models available for open procedures. The first two chapters of this thesis introduce these concepts further and provide detailed background knowledge. Chapter 3 explores interference that may from the concurrent use of EM tracking and cautery, finding that monopolar cautery interferes, while bipolar cautery does not. Chapter 4 discusses the validation of an assessment tool for open cholecystectomies (OCs) consisting of a porcine bench model and a Wii remote based infrared (IR) hand tracking system. The assessment tool is found to have construct validity and the face validity of the OC model is established. Chapter 5 concludes the thesis and presents several avenues of future research for the improvement of both the OC model and Wii remote based hand tracking system.

In surgical education, two of the current primary assessment tools for technical skills are the OSATS checklist and electromagnetic (EM) hand tracking. There are few bench models available for open procedures. The first two chapters of this thesis introduce these concepts further and provide detailed background knowledge. Chapter 3 explores interference that may from the concurrent use of EM tracking and cautery, finding that monopolar cautery interferes, while bipolar cautery does not. Chapter 4 discusses the validation of an assessment tool for open cholecystectomies (OCs) consisting of a porcine bench model and a Wii remote based infrared (IR) hand tracking system. The assessment tool is found to have construct validity and the face validity of the OC model is established. Chapter 5 concludes the thesis and presents several avenues of future research for the improvement of both the OC model and Wii remote based hand tracking system.