Objective:

To compare the acquisition of basic procedural suture skills in medical students according to practical teaching by surgeons versus peers.

Methods:

Pre-experimental study before and after, a practical suture workshop was held for 46 eighth-semester medical students of the University of Concepción between November and December 2017. Participants were randomly distributed in such a way that half of them were trained by sub-specialists surgeons and the other by medical students (suture instructor). The continuous and discontinuous suture was evaluated on the biological model using the “the objective structured assessment of technical skills” (OSATS) scale. A satisfaction survey was applied at the end of the workshop. Results of the OSATS scale are compared before and after the workshop, SPSS24® was used for statistical analysis by Student’s t-test for independent samples, considering significant p < 0.05.

Results:

Both groups progressed significantly on the OSATS scale (13.0 vs. 26.0, p < 0.001 for surgeons and 16.8 vs. 27.9, p < 0.001 for suture instructors) when comparing pre- versus post-workshop results, respectively. The post-workshop results do not show significant differences.

Conclusion:

Participants acquire basic surgical suture skills evidencing significant progression and similar degree of satisfaction regardless of whether they are trained by subspecialist surgeons or trained peers.