CFI Surgery was born out of a research collaboration between a trainee surgeon and a biomedical engineer. Driven by a commitment to incorporate techniques commonly used in their clinical work to make surgical training more efficient, objective and affordable.
This team of surgeons, doctors, and engineers are on a mission to transform surgical training for the next generation of surgeons. They accelerate and improve training using advanced imaging and automation tools for assessment and feedback. They aim to relieve the administrative and operational burden of training from senior surgeons so that they may focus on the important task of passing on their knowledge and expertise.
STCH is an all-inclusive kit containing all the materials and equipment to construct and assess 20 simulated anastomoses. (When performing a coronary artery bypass a heart surgeon uses an anastomosis to connect one of your arteries to a new channel with better blood flow). Completed anastomoses are scanned, and algorithms are used to provide a quantitative measure of the anastomotic narrowing, flow resistance and suture placement accuracy of the trainee surgeon.
We recently supported Dr Cistulli and Dr. Carelli from the Cardiothoracic Department of Royal Prince Alfred Hospital to take part in CFU Surgery’s training program and they give an account of their experience below.
Dr David Cistulli, Senior Cardiothoracic Registrar, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital
CFI Surgery’s STCH platform is an immersive training tool designed to simulate coronary anastomosis, a critical step of coronary artery bypass grafting. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to train with this platform as a junior doctor at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. During my training, I performed 20 coronary anastomoses, which were subsequently analysed by the CFI Surgery team using computed tomography imaging and 3D flow modelling. The feedback provided was detailed and highly constructive, helping refine my skills. I would like to thank The Baird Institute for their generous support in making this invaluable experience possible.
Dr. Matheus Carelli, Cardiothoracic Registrar, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital
Surgical training is undergoing changes in Australia and around the world, especially in Cardiothoracic Surgery, so having the opportunity to participate in simulation training is extremely beneficial.
My experience with CFI Surgery’s STCH was excellent. The simplicity and portability of the CFI platform makes using it effortless. I performed 20 coronary artery anastomoses simulations which were very realistic. The feedback that I got from the CFI CT imaging analysis and the simulations was constructive and informative. On top of that, my skills and progress during the study were critiqued by senior Cardiothoracic Surgeon, Professor Paul Bannon. The feedback was extremely valuable and has certainly improved my skills as a surgeon. I am very grateful to The Baird Institute for their support and their goal to improve surgical training.
