Baseline, post and retention testing
All participants performed the Baseline (Day 1), Post (Day 5) and Retention (Day 10) tests using a laparoscopic skill analytic system. This system allows for detailed capture of a kinematic data from the laparoscopic instruments during completion of the assigned tasks. Participants were assessed on their ability to complete 2 predefined training modules. These were a bead transfer (BEAD) task and a threading task (THREAD). During the bead transfer task, participants were required to transfer 22 beads from a large central pot to 6 small pots and 4 posts by initially grasping the bead with their left instrument, transferring it to their right instrument and then placing the bead appropriately. Participants were asked to complete the task in a clockwise fashion. During the threading task, participants were required to thread a rubber thread through a predefined course consisting of 9 pegs (Fig. Bead transfer task (left) and threading task (right).