Journal of the American College of Surgeons
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The disruption by the COVID-19 pandemic on undergraduate medical education allowed for assessment of virtual curricular innovations. One of the difficulties encountered in the virtual curriculum is the teaching of clinical competencies that would traditionally require students to undergo in-person simulations and patient encounters. We implemented a novel informed consent activity module, with standardized patients, to improve self-efficacy in communication within our core surgery clerkship. ⋯ A virtual module of communication skills training, using standardized patients and faculty, improved students' belief in their self-efficacy in obtaining informed consent. This communication module can be useful in a virtual or mixed curricular structure for both current and future medical students.
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The use of mesh in hernia repair has faced intense scrutiny, leading patients to become fearful of its use, despite its benefits in reducing hernia recurrence. We report a single institutional experience in performing hernia repair with mesh in terms of hernia-specific outcomes, mesh-related complications, and patient-reported quality of life. ⋯ Rates of mesh-related complications vary by hernia type. A majority of patients report excellent long-term quality of life, although a relatively large percentage of patients experience severe or disabling symptoms at long-term follow-up.