Does Surgeon Experience Correlate with Crowd-Sourced Skill Assessment in Robotic Bariatric Surgery?

Background The Global Evaluative Assessment of Robotic Skills (GEARS) rubric provides a measure of skill in robotic surgery. We hypothesize surgery performed by more experienced operators will be associated with higher GEARS scores. Method Patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy from 2016 to 2020 were analyzed. Three groups were defined by time in practice: less than 5, between 5 and 15, and more than 15 years. Continuous variables were compared with ANOVA and multivariable regression was performed. Results Fourteen operators performing 154 cases were included. More experienced surgeons had higher GEARS scores and shorter operative times. On multivariable regression, operative time (P = 0.027), efficiency (P = .022), depth perception (P = 0.033), and bimanual dexterity (P = 0.047) were associated with experience. Conclusions In our video-based assessment (VBA) model, operative time and several GEARS subcomponent scores were associated with surgical experience. Further studies should determine the association between these metrics and surgical outcomes.