Development and Validation of an Equine Castration Model and Rubric.

Overview

• This study developed and validated a simulation model and scoring rubric for equine castration to help veterinary students practice and improve their surgical skills in a low-stress setting.
• The model was evaluated by comparing performances of veterinary students and experienced veterinarians, demonstrating its usefulness for teaching and assessment.

Introduction and Background

• Castration is a very common surgical procedure in equine veterinary practice.
• Veterinary students need repeated, deliberate practice to become competent at such surgeries.
• However, opportunities to practice on live patients are limited, creating a training gap.
• Simulation models can provide a safer, controlled, and stress-reduced environment for students to learn and be assessed.

Objective

• To create a recumbent equine castration model and a rubric for assessing surgical performance.
• To validate this model and rubric using established educational validity frameworks.

Methods

• Participants: Two groups were involved—
  • Third-year veterinary students (n=24) with no prior equine castration experience.
  • Experienced veterinarians (n=25) with castration experience.
• Procedure:
  • Participants performed castration on the model while being video recorded.
  • A rubric with a checklist and global rating scale was used to score performance.
  • Participants completed a survey evaluating the realism and educational value of the model.
• Validation Framework:
  • Content evidence: Experts evaluated suitability for teaching and assessment.
  • Internal structure evidence: Reliability of rubric scores was analyzed.
  • Relationship with other variables: Comparing scores and performance times between experts and novices.

Results

• Expert Opinion:
  • 100% of veterinarians agreed or strongly agreed that the model was effective for student teaching and skill assessment.
• Reliability:
  • The rubric checklist showed good internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.805), indicating reliable scoring.
• Comparison of Performance:
  • Veterinarians completed the castration faster than students (p = 0.036).
  • Veterinarians achieved significantly higher global rating scores than students (p = 0.003).
  • There was no significant difference in total checklist scores between groups, except that veterinarians were more likely to check both sides for bleeding (p = 0.038).
• Survey from Participants:
  • Positive feedback indicated the model realistically represented surgical steps.

Discussion

• The developed equine castration model effectively provides a safe, controlled clinical skills environment for student practice.
• The rubric offers a consistent and reliable method to assess surgical skills during simulation.
• While checklist total scores did not differ much between experts and novices, global rating and specific behaviors (like checking for bleeding) did, supporting construct validity.
• The difference in speed and qualitative ratings reflect experienced clinicians’ proficiency versus novices.
• This simulation should ideally be combined with live animal practice to fully prepare students for real-field surgeries.

Conclusion

• The equine castration model and rubric are valid tools for teaching and assessing veterinary students’ surgical skills.
• Use of this model can enhance deliberate practice opportunities in veterinary education where live patient access is limited.
• The validated rubric provides educators with an objective method to assess skill development during training.
• Future training should complement model practice with real clinical cases to complete skill acquisition.