Challenges training left-handed surgeons

- Being left-handed is considered a disadvantage in surgical training.
- Right-handed surgeons reported more difficulty and less comfort teaching lefthanded trainees.
- The disadvantage left-handed surgical trainees face is due to barriers in training rather than inherent lesser ability.

BackgroundBeing left-handed (LH) is considered a disadvantage in surgical training. We sought to understand the perspectives of LH trainees and surgical educators on the challenges and modifications in training LH surgeons.MethodsA survey was distributed to surgeons, surgical residents, and medical students about challenges teaching and learning surgical technique.Results25 LH surgeons, 65 right-handed (RH) surgeons, and 39 LH trainees completed the survey. Compared to LH surgeons, RH surgeons reported more difficulty (46% vs 16%, p = 0.003) and less comfort teaching LH trainees (28% vs 4%, p = 0.002), and 10 (15%) reported that LH trainees have less technical ability. RH surgeons identified challenges translating technique to LH trainees and physical limitations of an environment optimized for right-handed mechanics.ConclusionsThe disadvantage LH surgical trainees face is due to barriers in training rather than inherent lesser ability. Nonetheless, minimal modifications are made to overcome these barriers.