Project 6 Summit: SAGES telementoring initiative.
Advances in telecommunications technology have facilitated telementoring initiatives that virtually link a mentor and mentee in the operating room and have shown significant promise in conferring high rates of safe procedure adoption. Recognizing that telementoring has the potential to be one solution to the global demand for what is sure to be a constant need for surgical retraining and safe incorporation of new technologies, the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) convened the Project 6 Summit.



Content experts in minimally invasive surgery, surgical mentoring and telementoring, surgical education, business development, healthcare innovation, and regulation were invited to attend a two-day summit to outline the current state of surgical telementoring and chart the challenges and opportunities going forward.



Five opportunity buckets consisting of: Legal and Regulatory, Business Development and Proving Value, Effective Communication and Education Requirements, Technology Requirements and Logistics were the subject of focused working groups and subsequent review and consensus by summit attendees. The current state-of-the-art and guiding principles are presented herein.



Telementoring activities are poised for exponential growth but will require a coordinated effort by stakeholders working through and around a healthcare system not yet suited for this paradigm shift.
Canadian Surgical Technologies and Advanced Robotics (CSTAR), University Hospital, London Health Sciences Centre, London, N6A 5A5, Canada. christopher.schlachta@lhsc.on.ca.
Christopher M
CM
Schlachta
University of California Irvine Medical Center, Orange, CA, USA.
Ninh T
NT
Nguyen
Akron Children's Hospital, Akron, OH, USA.
Todd
T
Ponsky
Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, TX, USA.
Brian
B
Dunkin
D002983:Clinical Competence; D013505:Digestive System Surgical Procedures / Q000193:education* / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy / Q000193:education* / Q000379:methods; D008611:Mentors; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / Q000193:education / Q000379:methods; D061214:Patient Safety; D066231:Surgeons; D017216:Telemedicine
Laparoscopy; Mentoring; Minimally invasive surgery; Quality; Telementoring