First- and second-year medical students gathered Aug. 17 in the Surgical Skills Lab to get some early hands-on experience.

“A lot of people don't get experience with surgery until their third year and so they have no idea what to expect,” said Tiffany Killblane, fourth-year medical student and treasurer of the General Surgery Student Interest Group at KU School of Medicine-Wichita. “This is a great environment to get hands-on experience in a non-threatening place.”

Fourth-year students, resident physicians and attendings assisted participants as they rotated through the six stations, including laparoscopic simulations, in the KUSM-W lab located on the third floor at Ascension Via Christi St. Francis. They also practiced skills such as knot tying and intubation using a medical manikin.

Killblane said students in the interest group wanted to give their first- and second-year counterparts the chance to familiarize themselves with “useful skills” before their surgical rotations.

“You get to hold the camera a lot in surgery, and if the first time that you've been able to do that is not when the surgeon hands you the camera (in the OR), it's a lot less threatening,” Killblane said. “If you get to help insert a chest tube, and it's not in the trauma bay the first time, that can be really useful.”

Nada Jibbe, a first-year student, says she’s keeping an open mind about her specialization, so attending the procedure night was an opportunity to learn more about surgery.

“My main motivation was I wanted to see the tools that they use,” she said, adding she particularly appreciated the laparoscopic simulations and the opportunity to practice intubation.

“I’ve never seen a colonoscopy before, so being able to do the simulation was really cool,” Jibbe said. “All the demos were very beneficial, and I would definitely do it again.”

Kavya Natesan, a first-year student said, “The procedure night has been one of my favorite events of the semester! For someone who hasn’t had significant exposure to the surgical realm, manipulating different surgical tools and practicing procedures provided me with a tangible opportunity to learn more about the field and interact with students and physicians who are passionate about surgery. I’m thankful for this experience and the students who helped orchestrate the event!"

The event was the brainchild of three fourth-year students and General Surgery Interest Group officers: Killblane and co-presidents Faith Kim and Joseph Joslin. The trio recruited residents, attendings and faculty to serve as instructors for the evening.

All three hope the event helps to demystify their chosen specialty.

“It's an early-on exposure for them to see what surgery is like,” said Kim. “We're really excited to generate some interest in the field of surgery, which is a specialty that a lot of people are a little scared of.”

Not too scared to try it out, however: Registration for the event filled within minutes, and there is a waiting list of students who are interested in participating. Given the enthusiastic response, Kim said the student group hopes to have a regular procedure night.

“This is just a beautiful sight to see,” said Marilee McBoyle, M.D., FACS, clinical professor and the surgical director of the lab. “I think it's the first time since I've been involved in the skills lab that I remember something thought out and planned exactly like this.”

To see more photos, view the Flickr photo album or click on the image below.