Laparoscopic Skills Lab

The Laparoscopic Skills lab provides surgical residents, fellows and practicing surgeons an opportunity to learn the fundamentals of laparoscopic surgery through various training modules. An official test center for FLS Certification, we assist in developing strong cognitive and technical skills, toward the goal of improving the quality of patient care.

The VCU Minimally Invasive Surgery Center has recently become an official test center for surgeons interested in becoming certified in the fundamentals of laparoscopic surgery (FLS).

ABOUT FLS
Hands-on skills training and assessment teaches the physiology, fundamental knowledge, and technical skills required in basic laparoscopic surgery. We encourage you to read the following: "Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery - Its Time Has Come."

FLS was designed for surgical residents, fellows and practicing surgeons to learn and practice laparoscopic skills to have the opportunity to definitely measure and document those skills.  »» photos from a skills lab

Developing cognitive knowledge, case/problem management skills and manual dexterity, the FLS box trainers have been endorsed by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and is a joint educational component of SAGES and ACS. 

Valuable as a foundation or supplement to any current MIS curriculum, FLS is also an appropriate learning tool for disciplines such as gynecology and urology, as FLS is not procedure-specific.

FLS Objectives:

• To improve the quality of care received by patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery


• To set minimum standards for basic cognitive and technical skills used in performing laparoscopic procedures


• To provide surgeons practicing laparoscopy with standardized didactic information on the fundamentals of laparoscopic surgery and a tool to assist in development of judgment and manual skills


• To create an objective quantifiable measure to assess knowledge, judgment and manual skills in basic laparoscopic surgery


• To make available to hospitals and institutions a validated tool to measure the knowledge and skills fundamental to the performance of laparoscopic surgery