On Fear, Distrust, and Ebola

video-basedmotion analysis (Glarner CE et al. Surgery. 2014;156[3]:729-734). Confidentiality issues will also need to be addressed when information is gatheredonsurgeons’ skills. Forexample, should details recorded during surgical proceduresbemadepublicandadmissible incourt when something goes wrong? “As a surgeon, the informationcouldprotectyou,but it could also implicate you, and it’s unclear howmuchof that information shouldbeexposed,” said Lee. Aggarwal also points to another concern, which relates to the dangers of focusing only on a surgeon’s technical skills to assesscompetency.“Surgeryismuchmorethan fixing things. Surgeons have to interactwith patients and a team of clinicians to make shared decisions about situations that may haveanumberofoptions,”hesaid. “Wehave tomakesure thatwe’re assessingboth technicalandnontechnical skills sothatat theend of theday,we’ll be able toknowthat the surgeries that arebeingperformedare safe and are providing benefits for patients.” Until more standardized assessment tools are widely adopted, patients are encouraged to be proactive in gathering information reflective of surgeons’ skills (Livingston EH. JAMA. 2015;313[5]:536).