Online Vocational Training course on ergonomics for orthopaedic Minimally Invasive Surgery Erasmus Project

Project Title

Online Vocational Training course on ergonomics for orthopaedic Minimally Invasive Surgery

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2014

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Open and distance learning; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Health and wellbeing

Project Summary

According to data gathered in ‘The Orthopaedic Industry Annual Report: 2009-2010’, nearly 2.9 million joint replacement procedures took place worldwide in 2009, being more than 1.4 million corresponding to hip (in Europe around 800,000 individuals suffer a hip fracture each year). Spine procedures volume exceeds 2.8 million worlwide in the same year (estimating that roughly 60% correspond to Europe). Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is a task with high physical and mental demands; surgeons have to perform high-force as well as high-precision tasks in combination with multimodal information processing. This leads to muscle overload and to physical and mental fatigue (causing severe musculoskeletal disorders with progressing working life) and to higher risk for human error and for inefficiencies in operations. Therefore, the implementation of ergonomic criteria in the design of working tools and of a suitable operating room environment is essential to improve efficiency, safety, and comfort for the operating team.

The objective of Train4OrthoMIS is the development of contents in ergonomics and usability applied to the design of job tasks in orthopaedic MIS of hip and spine and their implementation in an online course, to assure surgeons a worthy education and training along their professional career. The e-learning tool will be available in four European languages (English, Spanish, Polish and German).

Target groups in the project are orthopaedic MIS surgeons and assistants (e.g. nurses) and medical students interested in acquiring ergonomic and usability skills associated with MIS techniques as a formative process. On the one hand, the new developed materials will provide orthopaedic MIS surgeons and assistants with in-depth knowledge of the interaction with the working environment and surgical instruments, as well as postural hygiene during different kinds of surgery, thus (i) avoiding musculoskeleal diseases that currently affect them, and (ii) increasing at the same time their labour efficiency by reducing aches/fatigue and operating times. Moreover, these specialized training contents will lead them to (iii) upgrade their professional curriculum -facilitating promotion/advancement in their labour career- and (iv) be positioned as prescribers of ergonomics and usability. On the other hand, medical students will have (i) direct access to a unique specialization in a methodology which offers high future expectations, allowing a clear academic differentiation in the current highly competitive labour market. At the same time, students will be also (ii) rewarded by means of an academic accreditation, this way obtaining a key recognition and push in their learning.

Train4OrthoMIS consortium (IBV, BGU-MURNAU, CCMIJU, KOMAG, SUT) has been set up to guarantee the success of the action and its valorisation beyond the project duration, assuring: (i) Representativeness of and access to the heterogeneous group of end-user profiles, both for gathering training needs and for validation of the new VET course at European level. (ii) Access to background knowledge of the course and capability for developing training materials. (iii) Experience in the setting up of on-line VET learning courses. (iv) Exploitation capabilities beyond the project duration. (v) Experience and capabilities for EU-wide dissemination. (vi) Recognition of the informal training proposed at academic level.

Intellectual Outputs planned for Train4OrthoMIS project are the following:

O1. Training needs in MIS orthopaedic surgery ergonomics for surgeons.
O2. VET curriculum of the Train4OrthoMIS.
O3. Complete materials and contents of the course.
O4. First prototype of the e-learning course.
O5. Pilot test report.
O6. Final version of the e-learning course.

The consortium will not apply any access restriction to contents. There are a project website available where training contents developed throughout the project are accessible. http://train4orthomis.eu/index.php/2-uncategorised/32-course

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 342058 Eur

Project Coordinator

INSTITUTO DE BIOMECANICA DE VALENCIA & Country: ES

Project Partners

• INSTYTUT TECHNIKI GORNICZEJ KOMAG
• POLITECHNIKA SLASKA
• BG KLINIKUM MURNAU GGMBH
• FUNDACION CENTRO DE CIRUGIA DE MINIMA INVASION JESUS USON