Generation of Cross-Specialty Consensus Statements on Soft Tissue Management via a Modified Delphi Method

BACKGROUND: Soft tissue management (STM) training programs for surgeons are largely tradition based, and substantial differences exist among different surgical specialties. The lack of comprehensive and systematic clinical evidence on how surgical techniques and implants affect soft tissue healing makes it difficult to develop evidence-based curricula. As a curriculum development group (CDG), we set out to find common grounds in the form of a set of consensus statements to serve as the basis for surgical soft tissue education. METHODS: Following a backward planning process and Kern’s six-step approach, the group selected 13 topics to build a cross-specialty STM curriculum. A set of statements based on the curriculum topics were generated by the CDG through discussions and a literature review of three topics. A modified Delphi process including one round of pilot voting through a face-to-face CDG meeting and two rounds of web-based survey involving 22 panelists were utilized for the generation of consensus statements. RESULTS: Seventy-one statements were evaluated, and 56 statements reached the 80% consensus for “can be taught as is.” CONCLUSIONS: Using a modified Delphi method, a set of cross-specialty consensus statements on soft tissue management were generated. These consensus statements can be used as a foundation for multi-specialty surgical education. Similar methods that combine expert experience and clinical evidence can be used to develop specialty-specific consensus on soft tissue handling.