A gynecological surgeon in Phoenix believes that the Nintendo Wii may actually be the next stage in creating the world’s best surgeons. Dr. Mark Smith, MD claims that his students, who use the Wii to train themselves on surgery techniques, can improve their skills up to 50% as opposed to simply sticking to traditional techniques.

Smith claims that the Wii could revolutionize the training of doctors, eliminating the danger of having inexperienced physicians performing surgeries, while saving hospitals thousands on training equipment.

"One of the problems we’ve had over the years is we had no method to teach surgeons surgical skills without going into surgery. We now have simulators that help them develop those skills. The problem is they are incredibly expensive - like a flight simulator for a pilot. This gives us a much less costly way to train these fine motor skills that the surgeons employ during surgery.

"Up until the last ten years, they learned in actual surgery, [using] what’s called the apprentice method - standing beside an expert surgeon, watching and helping to do it."

In order to utilize the Wii to train students, Smith has the future surgeons don cyber gloves which they then wear while manipulating surgical tools monitored by the Wii. Smith claims that this training allows them to be more efficient, commit fewer errors, and conduct more fluid movements than those who don’t utilize this method.

So, next time you’re considering major surgery, ask around for a doctor who spends inordinate amounts of time playing the Wii before you agree to let anyone cut you open. Chances are, the geek in the OR may just be the finest surgeon in all the land. Score one for gamers!

- Via CVG