Psychomotor abilities in diagnostic upper gastrointestinal endoscopy derived from procedural task analysis techniques and expert review

Background: Any prediction of a person's ability to succeed in a motor skill depends on the detection and accurate measurement of the basic abilities for the performance of that skill. Task analysis is needed to determine the psychomotor skills and abilities required to perform an action. This study aimed to determine the components of psychomotor abilities for diagnostic upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy through procedural task analysis (PTA) and expert review.

Material and methods: A multisource, multimethod task analysis was conducted in six metropolitan teaching hospitals affiliated with the adult gastroenterology and hepatology training centers in the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2019. Observation, video-recording, and think-aloud protocols were used while diagnostic upper GI endoscopy was performed. To confirm the accuracy of the PTA, the incorporated the views of the adult gastroenterology and hepatology subspecialty experts through the checklist of PTA assessment criteria. Finally, to determine the psychomotor abilities for each stage of the procedure, the study incorporated a panel of experts from occupational therapy, physical education, physical medicine, and adult gastroenterology and hepatology subspecialty.

Results: Of the 15 psychomotor abilities examined, 11 were determined for upper GI endoscopy procedure, of which six cases (including visuospatial and perceptual abilities, hand-eye coordination, multilimb coordination, finger dexterity, arm-hand steadiness, and manual dexterity) were the most frequent.

Conclusions: PTA techniques and subsequent expert review were used to identify the components of psychomotor abilities for diagnostic upper GI endoscopy. It is suggested that PTA is performed for other procedures, and after psychomotor abilities are specified, proportional tests are developed.