Multimodal team interactions in robot-assisted surgery

Communication gaps have been systematically linked to failures during surgery; however few studies have addressed challenges related to the remoteness of the surgeon during robot-assisted surgery (RAS). While studies on team communication in the Operating Room (OR) rarely report on nonverbal aspects, our initial work has shown that the vast majority of interaction events between the console surgeon and the right bed side assistant is nonverbal. This study focuses on improving our understanding of the nature of the multimodal interactions between surgeons and right bed side assistants. Six robot-assisted radical prostatectomies were recorded and the interaction events between the surgeon and the right bed side assistant were categorized by type (verbal/nonverbal), topic, and sender. The proportion of verbal and nonverbal events varied with the topic of the interaction. Strategies to improve team communication during surgery should take into account both the use of nonverbal communication means and the change in communication strategies based on purpose.