Surgical education continues throughout a healthcare professional’s career. As procedures, technologies and clinical practices evolve, surgeons may need opportunities to develop new skills, refresh existing knowledge or become familiar with different procedural approaches and medical technologies.
Alongside supervised clinical experience, this education can include simulation-based training, hands-on workshops, case discussions, digital learning and other structured programmes.
A surgical simulation lab provides a dedicated environment for some of this training. Using physical models, simulators, medical equipment and other learning tools, healthcare professionals can practise selected skills and procedural steps outside direct patient care.
Simulation does not replace operating-room experience. Instead, it provides an additional setting for structured practice, repetition and feedback as part of a broader surgical education pathway.
What Is a Surgical Simulation Lab?
A surgical simulation lab is an educational environment where healthcare professionals can practise surgical skills and aspects of procedures using simulators, models, equipment and other training technologies.
The complexity of the simulation can vary considerably. Some models are designed to practise a single technical skill, while others recreate multiple stages of a procedure or clinical scenario.
Depending on the training programme, a surgical simulation lab may include:
- Task trainers and physical models
- Laparoscopic or endoscopic training systems
- Virtual or digital simulation
- Procedure-specific simulation
- Medical device training
- Imaging and visualisation systems
- Team-based simulation
- Performance assessment and structured feedback
The training method is generally selected according to the learning objective, the procedure and the participant’s level of experience.
Why Is Ongoing Surgical Training Important?
Becoming a surgeon involves extensive formal education and supervised clinical training, but professional learning continues beyond qualification.
New surgical approaches and technologies may introduce different instrumentation, workflows or technical requirements. Surgeons may also participate in continuing education to develop expertise in particular procedures or clinical areas.
Structured surgical training provides an environment in which selected concepts and skills can be introduced, demonstrated, practised and discussed before or alongside their application in clinical practice.
For experienced surgeons, training may also be relevant when adopting a technology or procedural approach that differs from those already used in their practice.
The appropriate training pathway depends on the procedure, technology, clinician’s previous experience and relevant professional or institutional requirements.
Why Is Simulation Used in Surgical Training?
Simulation provides opportunities to practise selected elements of surgical care without involving a patient.
Participants may be able to repeat a particular task, work through procedural steps and receive feedback from faculty within a controlled educational setting.
This can be useful for both technical and non-technical learning objectives. Depending on the programme, training may address areas such as:
- Instrument handling
- Suturing and other technical skills
- Tissue manipulation
- Procedural steps and workflow
- Device familiarisation
- Communication and teamwork
- Decision-making in simulated clinical scenarios
Simulation-based surgical education is now used internationally as an adjunct to clinical experience. A 2025 review of global surgical simulation described its role in providing structured opportunities to practise technical and non-technical skills through deliberate practice and feedback.
However, performance during simulation should not be equated automatically with clinical competence. The value of simulation depends on the training objective, curriculum, quality of instruction and assessment, and how the learning is subsequently applied in supervised clinical practice.
What Types of Surgical Simulation Are Used?
There is no single type of surgical simulator. Different methods are suited to different learning objectives.
Task Trainers and Physical Models
Task trainers are models designed for practising a specific skill or procedure. They may be used to develop individual psychomotor skills or to rehearse a defined part of a procedure. The term is widely used within healthcare simulation.
In surgical education, physical simulation can range from relatively simple bench or box trainers to anatomical models designed around particular procedures.
For example, laparoscopic task trainers may be used to practise instrument manipulation, coordination or suturing, while anatomical models may support training involving particular anatomical structures or procedural steps.
Virtual and Digital Simulation
Virtual or computer-based simulators can reproduce selected procedural tasks in a digital environment.
Depending on the system, they may allow participants to practise instrument movements, procedural sequences or other defined tasks and may provide predefined performance measures.
Digital learning can also complement hands-on training through case review, procedural education and other forms of structured learning.
Procedure- and Device-Specific Training
Some training is designed around a particular procedure or medical technology.
These programmes may combine simulation, anatomical models, equipment and faculty-led instruction to help participants understand procedural steps or become familiar with the operation and handling of a device.
Device familiarisation should be distinguished from broader clinical competence. Learning to operate a medical technology is only one part of the knowledge, training and experience required to perform the procedure in which it is used.
Does Surgical Simulation Replace Operating-Room Training?
No. Surgical simulation is generally used to complement supervised clinical experience rather than replace it.
A simulator can reproduce selected technical tasks, procedural workflows or anatomical situations, but it cannot recreate every aspect of surgery.
Real procedures involve variations in patient anatomy, disease, tissue characteristics and intraoperative circumstances. Clinical decision-making also takes place within the wider context of an individual patient’s condition and care.
Simulation and clinical training therefore serve different purposes. Simulation provides an environment for structured practice and feedback, while supervised clinical experience is necessary for learning how surgical knowledge and skills are applied in patient care.
Surgical Training Beyond a Single Simulation Lab
Not every learning objective is best addressed using the same training method. Surgical education may combine simulation with theoretical learning, case discussions, hands-on workshops, procedural demonstrations, live surgical observation and faculty-led teaching.
For selected programmes, cadaver-based training may also be used. Cadaveric specimens provide direct anatomical exposure and allow participants to examine anatomical relationships, tissue planes and procedural approaches in a hands-on setting.
Cadaver-based training also has limitations, as preserved tissue does not reproduce all the characteristics or physiological conditions of living surgery. A 2022 scoping review of surgical anatomy education found that cadaver-based teaching was associated with gains in anatomical knowledge and was highly valued by surgical residents, while evidence linking this training to patient outcomes remained limited.
Cadaver-based training can therefore complement other forms of surgical education rather than replace simulation or supervised clinical experience.
Genesis MedTech has supported selected surgical masterclasses with hospitals, academic institutions and clinical faculty in different countries. These programmes may combine lectures, live surgical observation and hands-on cadaver-based training.
For example, Uniportal Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery masterclasses supported by Reach Surgical at Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge have combined live surgical observation with cadaver-based training. This illustrates how different training environments can be used according to the objectives of the programme. Read more
Genesis Innovation Centre: A Dedicated Environment for Healthcare Professional Education
Dedicated training facilities can bring several elements of professional education together within one environment.
The Genesis Innovation Centre (GIC), located within the Genesis MedTech Campus provides dedicated facilities for healthcare professional education and hands-on training.
Depending on the programme, training at GIC may include simulation-based education, hands-on workshops, medical device familiarisation, procedural demonstrations and faculty-led learning.
These facilities provide healthcare professionals with opportunities to practise selected skills, explore procedural workflows and become familiar with medical technologies in a structured educational environment outside direct patient care.
GIC serves as a dedicated hub for Genesis MedTech’s healthcare professional education activities, complementing training programmes delivered with clinical and academic partners in other locations.
How Surgical Simulation Fits Into Continuing Surgical Education
Surgical simulation provides a structured environment in which healthcare professionals can practise selected skills, receive feedback and become familiar with procedures or technologies outside direct patient care.
It complements rather than replaces supervised clinical experience. Depending on the learning objective, surgical education may also include hands-on workshops, clinical observation, cadaver-based training and other faculty-led approaches.
Together, these formats contribute to continuing professional education throughout a surgeon’s career.
Explore Surgical Education Programmes
Reach Surgical supports healthcare professional education through simulation-based training and hands-on workshops at GIC, as well as selected surgical masterclasses delivered with clinical training partners internationally.
Explore Surgical Training Programmes
References:
Global surgical simulation education, current practices, and future directions. Surgery. 2025;180:109050. Reviews the role of simulation-based education as an adjunct to clinical experience and discusses technical and non-technical skills, deliberate practice and structured feedback.
Streith L, Cadili L, Wiseman SM. Evolving anatomy education strategies for surgical residents: A scoping review. American Journal of Surgery. 2022;224(2):681–693. Reviews anatomy education approaches including cadaver-based training and notes limited evidence concerning translation to patient outcomes.