Rhinological procedures demand a high degree of technical expertise and anatomical knowledge. Because of limited surgical opportunities, ethical considerations and the complexity of these procedures, simulation-based training has become increasingly important. This review aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of simulation models used in rhinology training.

Searches were conducted on PubMed, Embase, Cochrane and Google Scholar for studies conducted between July 2012 and July 2022. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (‘PRISMA’) protocol defined a final list of articles. Each validated study was assigned a level of evidence and a level of recommendation based on the Oxford Centre of Evidence-Based Medicine classification.

Following exclusions, 42 articles were identified which encompassed six types of simulation models and 26 studies evaluated validity. The rhinological skills assessed included endoscopic sinus surgery (n = 28), skull base/cerebrospinal fluid leak repair (n = 14), management of epistaxis and/or sphenopalatine artery ligation (n = 8), and septoplasty and septorhinoplasty (n = 6). All studies reported the beneficial impact of their simulation models on trainee development.

Simulation training in rhinology is a valuable adjunct to traditional surgical education. Although evidence is of moderate quality, the findings highlight the importance of simulation-based training in rhinology training.

The ‘second victim phenomenon’ is a term attributed to the traumatic effect a medical error can have on healthcare professionals. Patient safety incidents have been shown to occur in as many as one in seven patients in hospital. These incidents cause significant, potentially devastating, trauma to patients and their relatives, and can have deep and long-lasting effects on the health professionals involved. These incidents can have a negative impact on doctors’ emotional wellbeing; their professional practice in relation to this impact has not been extensively investigated in surgical trainees.

A survey of UK otolaryngology trainees was conducted to investigate the effects of complications and medical errors on trainees, and examine how these are discussed within departments.

The findings suggest that further training is required and would be warmly received by otolaryngology trainees as part of higher surgical training.

This study aimed to assess the published literature on non-technical skills in otolaryngology surgery and examine the applicability of any research to others’ practice, and to explore how the published literature can identify areas for further development and guide future research.

A systematic review was conducted using the following key words: ‘otolaryngology’, ‘otorhinolaryngology’, ‘ENT’, ‘ENT surgery’, ‘ear, nose and throat surgery’, ‘head and neck surgery’, ‘thyroid surgery’, ‘parathyroid surgery’, ‘otology’, ‘rhinology’, ‘laryngology’ ‘skull base surgery’, ‘airway surgery’, ‘non-technical skills’, ‘non technical skills for surgeons’, ‘NOTSS’, ‘behavioural markers’ and ‘behavioural assessment tool’.

Three publications were included in the review – 1 randomised, controlled trial and 2 cohort studies – involving 78 participants. All were simulation-based studies involving training otolaryngology surgeons.

Little research has been undertaken on non-technical skills in otolaryngology. Training surgeons’ non-technical skill levels are similar across every tested aspect. The research already performed can guide further studies, particularly amongst non-training otolaryngology surgeons and in both emergency and elective non-simulated environments.