Staff Experiences in Robotic Theatres

A Qualitative Study of Staff Experiences and Practices Within the Robotic Theatre Setup

Studies have shown that team work impacts patients safety. This is particularly the case in surgical theatres where individuals from different backgrounds (surgeon, anaesthetists, nurses, ..etc) work together to achieve a common goal which is looking after the patient. The robotic theatre set up is different due to the physical separation of the surgeon from the patient and the rest of the team. This may represent a communication challenge. The Study investigators aim to study theatre staff experiences and practices of communication and teamwork in this special setup, investigating any challenges participants may be facing and possible ways of adapting to them. Staff opinions and suggestions for improvement will be explored for utmost surgical performance and patient safety.

The study will involve two parts:1) individual staff interviews and 2) teamwork observations during real life surgery. The two parts should complement each other giving an overall picture of the teamwork in the robotic theatre setup.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Robotic Staff Experiences
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: No intervention

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 54

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United Kingdom
  • Leicester, United Kingdom
    • University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Participants will be theatre staff, from any surgical discipline, who are involved in robotic surgery practice at University Hospitals of Leicester and Cambridge University Hospital. This includes, but not limited to surgeons (primary and assistants), nurses (scrub, circulating, or student), anaesthetists (including trainees) and operating department practitioners (ODP).

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Robotic theatre staff as above.
2. Willing and able to participate.
3. Good command of the English language.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Theatre staff not involved in robotic surgery.
2. Participants not willing / unable to participate.
3. Staff that have not worked in a conventional theatre setup before.
4. Inability to read/speak/understand English.
5. Lack of capacity for consent.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

2

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Robotic procedures; Experiences and practices in Robotic theatres will be studied via semi-structured interviews with staff as well as team observations during real time robotic surgery. As the study is a qualitative one, data collection will continue till we reach saturation of theoretical categories. We expect 20 interviews and 10 observations to suffice.	Other: No intervention; This is a qualitative study involving staff interviews and observations. No intervention is being applied.
Non-Robotic procedures; Staff involved in robotic surgery will have almost definitely worked in non-robotic theatres ie major abdominal and laparoscopic. Staff interviews will explore differences in experiences and practices between these different theatre setups. In addition, we aim to observe further 5 non-robotic procedures to evaluate staff teamwork and communication within the more regular theatre setup.	Other: No intervention; This is a qualitative study involving staff interviews and observations. No intervention is being applied.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Robotic staff experiences.	This will be explored using individual interviews and team observations. Textual data of interview transcripts and observation field notes will be analysed using constant comparative method.	1 year
Robotic staff practices	This will be explored using individual interviews and team observations. Textual data of interview transcripts and observation field notes will be analysed using constant comparative method.	1 year

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Staff communication in robotic theatres.	This will be explored using individual interviews and team observations. Textual data of interview transcripts and observation field notes will be analysed using constant comparative method.	1 year
Staff teamwork	This will be explored using individual interviews and team observations. Textual data of interview transcripts and observation field notes will be analysed using constant comparative method.	1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Leicester

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 8, 2018
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 21, 2019
• Study Completion (Actual): March 21, 2019

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 19, 2018
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 26, 2018
• First Posted (Actual): March 5, 2018

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 3, 2021
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 29, 2021
• Last Verified: April 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Robotic surgery; patient safety; teamwork; theatre staff
• Other Study ID Numbers: 0647; 237227 (Other Identifier: Integrated Research Application System (IRAS))

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No