I took the Suturing Seminar Combo (101 and 201) through Key Access Institute and absolutely enjoyed every aspect of both courses. In short, I would definitely recommend these courses for both new learners and health professionals wanting to practice/refine/improve/receive feedback on their existing skill set. I don't leave very many reviews, but Key Access rightfully deserves all 5 of these stars. Feel free to read below for more details.
Our instructor for both days, Majed, was an excellent instructor and is extremely knowledgable (currently a surgical assistant for a variety of subspecialties, formerly an ob-gyn surgeon in Sudan). His instruction was organized and clear, his feedback was constructive and without judgment, he was patient and personable, and his tips will make (suturing/surgical) life so much easier! Also, Carolyn (registrar/student services) was very pleasant and helpful. She always responded in a timely manner and she often went above and beyond to ensure a good experience for both the students and instructors. I will mention here that we did not have a full class (there was only 3 of us for 101 and 2 for 201 when there is typically 14 students in 101 and 4 for 201) and so we may have received more focused attention than usual. But, I will also mention here that Key Access made an exception to keep this seminar open even with lower than usual enrollment since all 3 of us had already made travel arrangements (2 of us flew in from out of state).
I am a new grad PA going into CT surgery and as in search of a suturing/surgical skills course to review, practice, and strengthen my technical skills. While I had learned suturing basics in PA school and had 3 surgical rotations (general, orthopedics, and CT surgery), I was not completely satisfied or confident in my suturing skills. My surgical rotations were in larger teaching institutions, which meant exposure to a wide variety of sometimes rare and complicated cases but also, less opportunity for hands-on experience (i.e. suturing) since there are so many other learners in the OR. These two courses, particularly seminar 201, were exactly what I was looking for and what I would recommend to anyone in a similar situation. If you are comfortable with the fundamentals of suturing and knot tying, I would recommend just taking 201. In 201, you essentially spend all day suturing different tissue layers of a human cadaver. My classmate an I shared a pelvis (both legs included, without feet) in 201 and we each got a lower extremity in 101. Majed personalizes each student's experience based on their field of practice. His instruction for me was more surgically geared and I even got to practice inserting and securing drains! My alternative medicine MD classmate received instruction more applicable to the outpatient setting (e.g. traumatic wounds/lacerations). Majed also incorporates very helpful tips on how to troubleshoot various suturing scenarios (i.e. run out of suture, etc), which I was not exposed during my PA training. I definitely feel much more confident in my technical skills thanks to Majed and this seminar.
Let me say this again here: Human cadavers. Human cadavers. Human cadavers. Key Access is one of the very few places that offers human cadavers for their suturing courses. Nothing really compares to the real thing (sorry, not sorry to all the pigs feet, chicken breasts, bananas, anything not human). read more