Course Development Manager, Yeovil Academy, Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Project Manager, South West Laparoscopic Consortium, part of the National Training Programme for Laparoscopic Colorectal Cancer Surgery. Enhanced Recovery Partnership Programme: Colorectal Workstream.

Dr Carter has extensive experience in leading multi-professional teams to provide outstanding training in several clinical specialties and is a keen champion of e-learning and assessment.

Education

2006 Certificate of Teaching in Higher Education, University of Dundee

2001 PhD titled: ‘Comparison of elastic properties of solid and hollow intra-abdominal organs for small deformations’. University of Dundee (Dept. Surgery & Molecular Oncology)

1991 BSc (Hons) Anatomy and Physiology (II/i) University of Dundee.

Research Interests

1. Founding member of the Workgroup for Evaluation of Simulators and Skills Training programmes which is a subcommittee of the European Association of Endoscopic Surgeons. This group was formed due to the rapid increase in the use of virtual reality simulators as training tools for surgeons and the concomitant growth of companies providing such simulators. Meeting biannually, this group of experts in the field discuss emerging evidence and best practice, reporting findings at conference and publishing consensus guidelines.

2. Validation studies of Objective Structured Clinical Exam for laparoscopic surgical skills. Objective structured clinical exams (OSCE) have been used in the Cuschieri Skills Centre since 1993, I have carried out studies to look at the concurrent validity of individual components of these exams. New methods of assessment and marking have been developed as a result of this research.

3. Follow-up studies on surgical trainees after attending training courses. Using web-based questionnaires, I have investigated the trends in practice of surgeons who previously attended a training course in the CSC. The results of these studies have enabled me to designed novel courses targeted at the changing training needs of laparoscopic surgeons.

4. Development of novel, objective practical assessments for the basic surgical skills course. I devised a series of simple objective tests to look at key skills. These assessments should be more robust that the current methods and enable assessors to provide clearer feedback to students in order for improvement to take place. A computer-based test for cognitive skills has also been designed and both new forms of assessment are being compared to the standard methods used previously.

Publications

Cuschieri A, Dunkley P, Carter F. ‘Safe Practice in Endoscopic Surgery’. BMJ Publishing Group. 1997 (three 60 minute teaching videos).

Scott-Conner, C E H, Cuschieri, A, Carter, F. ‘Minimal access surgical anatomy’. Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, London, Philadelphia. 2000.

Carter FJ, Smith D, Adamson GD, Hogg G, Christie LS, Tang B, Nicol A. Basic surgical skills e-learning package. Available from Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh in 2007.

Francis N & Carter F. 'A Patient's Journey Through Bowel Cancer Surgery'. An interactive patient education DVD covering an enhanced recovery patient pathway from diagnosis, through treatment to discharge. Available from NHS Training for Innovation, 2009.

Carter F et al. 'What to expect from Hip and Knee Replacement Surgery'. An interactive patient education DVD covering typical patient journeys through hip and knee replacement surgery. Available from NHS Training for Innovation, 2009.

References

1. Carter F, Russell E, Dunkley P, Cuschieri, A. ‘Restructured animal tissue model for training in laparoscopic anti-reflux surgery’. Min. Invas. Ther. 1994,3:77-80.

2. Frank T, Willetts G J, Carter F, Cuschieri A. ‘Clamping the small intestine during surgery: predicted and measured sealing forces’. Proc. Instn. Mech. Eng. 1995,209:111-115. 3. Davies P J, Carter F J, Roxburgh D G, Cuschieri A. ‘Mathematical modelling for keyhole surgery simulations: spleen capsule as an elastic membrane’. J. Theoretical Med. 1999,1:247-262

4. Carter F J, Frank, T G, Davies, P J, Cuschieri, A. ‘Puncture forces of solid organ surfaces’. Surg. Endosc. 2000, 14:783-786.

5. Francis N K, Hanna G B, Cresswell A B, Carter F J, Cuschieri A. ‘The performance of master surgeons on standard aptitude testing’. Am. J. Surg. 2001, 182:30-33.

6. Carter, F J, Frank, T G, Davies, P J, McLean, D, Cuschieri, A. 'Biomechanical testing of intra-abdominal soft tissues'. Medical Image Analysis 2001, 5, 231-236.

7. Davies, P J, Carter, F J, Cuschieri, A. ‘Mathematical modelling for keyhole surgery simulations: a biomechanical model for spleen tissue’. Journal of Applied Mathematics 2002, 67, 41-67.

8. Schijven, M, Jakimowicz, J, Carter, F. ‘How to select aspirant laparoscopic surgical trainees: establishing concurrent validity comparing Xitact LS500 index performance scores with standardized psychomotor aptitude test battery scores’. Journal of Surgical Research. 2004 Sep 121(1):112-9.

9. B Tang , GB Hanna, F Carter, GD Adamson, JP Martindale, A Cuschieri. ‘Competence assessment of laparoscopic operative and cognitive skills: Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) or Observational Clinical Human Reliability Assessment (OCHRA) World Journal of Surgery (2005)

10. Galleano R, Carter F, Brown SI, Frank T, Cuschieri A. Can armrests improve comfort and task performance in laparoscopic surgery? Surgical Endoscopy 2005 (available online, 2006)

11. Carter F, Schijven MP, Aggarwal R, Grantcharov T, Francis NK, Hanna GB and Jakimowicz JJ. Consensus guidelines for validation of virtual reality surgical simulators. Surg. Endosc. 2005 19:1523-1532.

12. Carter F, Schijven MP, Aggarwal R, Grantcharov T, Francis NK, Hanna GB and Jakimowicz JJ. Updated consensus guidelines published on-line December 2006 – see http://www.eaes-eur.org/

13. Extent of Innate Dexterity and Ambidexterity across Handedness and Gender: Implications for Training in Laparoscopic Surgery. El Niel F, Carter FJ, Tang B, Cuschieri A. Surgical Endoscopy (accepted June 2007)

14. Aggarwal R, Schijven MP, Grantcharov TP, Carter FJ, di Lorenzo N, Hanna GB, Jakimowicz JJ. Consensus guidelines for curriculum design and implementation of virtual reality surgical simulators. Surgical Endoscopy (in press)

External Links

Yeovil Colorectal Enhanced Recovery Website http://www.enhancedrecovery.org

Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust http://www.yeovilhospital.nhs.uk

South West Laparoscopic Consortium http://www.southwestlaparoscopy.org

Enhanced Recovery Partnership Programme http://www.18weeks.nhs.uk/Content.aspx?path=/achieve-and-sustain/Transforming-and-improving/enhanced-recovery/

NHS Training for Innovation http://www.tfi.nhs.uk/about-us.html