Basic Surgical Skills (BSS) course 07E

Basic surgical skills is a practical, workshop-led course designed to teach fundamental surgical techniques. Each skill is introduced through a step-by-step demonstration, followed by hands-on practice.

This course is ideal for:

• Foundation doctors (FY1–FY3)
• Core surgical trainees (CT1, CT2)
• Healthcare professionals looking to build or refresh essential surgical skills
• Foundation doctors preparing for core surgical training interviews
• Candidates preparing for the MRCS Part B exam.

SCPs may attend the BSS course to meet the syllabus requirements for Intraoperative Skills.  

After attending this course, you will be able to:

• Demonstrate safe surgical practice for the patient, the surgeons and the surgical team
• Demonstrate the correct techniques for laying safe surgical knots and placing sutures
• Describe and demonstrate the principles of tissue handling and related techniques
• Describe and demonstrate the basic principles of safe endoscopic surgery.

Over the two in-person course days, you will engage in a range of hands-on sessions.

Day two: You will push your skills further with advanced techniques in assisted abdominal closure, vascular surgery, tendon repair, and an introduction to endoscopic surgery. You’ll also get the opportunity to try your hand at removing a simulated appendix during the endoscopy session.

The sessions will also cover:

• Gowning and gloving
• Local anaesthetic management
• Tissue handling for infected and contaminated tissues, considering variations in skin, bowel, and vascular sites
• Electrosurgery device usage, ensuring safe and effective application
• Endoscopic instrument manipulation, working within a 3D surgical environment while interpreting a 2D remote image; 
• Visuospatial awareness, depth cueing, and control of the 'fulcrum effect' in endoscopic surgery. 

This course aligns with the GMC Capabilities in Practice Framework and the Foundation Curriculum High-Level Outcomes.

Training centres may use a variety of porcine, ovine, or maleagrine tissues, while some opt for synthetic models. If you have any concerns about the materials used in the course, please contact us.

While prior surgical experience is not required, the course is best suited to those already on a clinical training path. For undergraduates or those outside the healthcare surgical field, we recommend Surgical Skills for Students and Health Professionals.

Pre-course e-learning

Ahead of the course, you will have access to the BSS handbook and course videos on our e-learning platform, followed by a multiple-choice question test with a pass mark of 80%. Completing this ahead of the course will help you to get the most out of every session. 

Follow-up e-learning

Once you have completed the face-to-face element of the course, continued practice is essential for maintaining and building upon your foundational skills.

To support this, we provide a set of optional follow-up resources on our online learning platform. These include:

• Home kit – knot tying and suturing
• Home kit – endoscopic stimulator
• Robotics overview.

View the full BSS programme.