Alt+c to go to content
The Centre of Excellence for Simulation Education and Innovation

Bin Zheng, MD, PhD

Bio: My current Human Factors research in Surgery aims to improve the work efficiency of surgeons in performing minimally invasive surgery and other types of image-guided surgery. Specifically, I study surgeon’ behaviours, abilities, and limitations in the stressful medical practice environment and create simulation-based training programs for helping surgeons to overcome the difficulties. The goal of my studies is to enable surgeon, either as an individual or working in a team, to perform effectively so that patients received exceptional healthcare service when undergoing hospital visits.

Research Interests

I am currently involved in 4 research areas:

  • Human Factors in surgery (Workload and Eye-tracking assessment of surgeons)
  • Surgical team and team training
  • Simulation technology and evaluation
  • Human movement control and skills acquisition

Human Factors in surgery

Eye-tracking in Surgery Application project is collaborated with Dr. M. Stella Atkins in the Computing Science department of SFU and Locarna System Inc located in Victoria, BC.

  1. Zheng B, Tien G, Atkins SM, Tanin H, Meneghetti AT, Qayumi AK & Panton ONM (2010) Surgeon’s Vigilance in the Operating Room. Accepted by American Journal of Surgery, Jul 27, 2010. In press
  2. Zheng B, Swanström LL, Meneghetti AT, Panton ONM & Qayumi AK (2010) Quantifying surgeon’s contribution to team effectiveness on a mixed team with a junior surgeon. Accepted by Surgery, Nov 16, 2010.
  3. Zheng B, Cassera MA, Martinec DV, Spaun GO & Swanström LL (2010) Measuring mental workload of surgeons in performing NOTES procedures. Oral presentation selected for the SAGES 2011 conference, Manuscript prepared for Surgical Endoscope in Feb of 2011.
  4. G. Tien, B. Zheng, C. Swindells and M.S. Atkins. Measuring Situation Awareness of Surgeons in Laparoscopic Training. Proceedings of Eye Tracking Research and Applications, ETRA 2010, pp. 149-152, March 2010
  5. Zheng B, Cassera MA, Martinec DV, Spaun GO & Swanström LL (2010) Measuring mental workload during the performance of advanced laparoscopic tasks. Surgical Endoscope. 24(1):45-50. (Funded by NOSCAR Research grant)
  6. Swanström LL & Zheng B (2008) Spatial Orientation and Off-Axis Challenges for NOTES. Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Clinics of North America. 18(2):315-24.
  7. Zheng B, Janmohamed Z, MacKenzie CL (2003) Reaction time and the decision-making process in endoscopic surgery. Surgical Endoscopy, 17(9):1475-80 (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)

Surgical team and team training

  1. Zheng B, Panton ONM, Al-tayeb T, Meneghetti A, Qayumi AK (2011) Operative time independently affected by surgical team size: Data from two Canada hospitals, Manuscript compeled for Canadian Journal of Surgery.
  2. Cassera MA, Zheng B, Martinec DV, Swanström LL (2009). Surgical time independently affected by surgical team size, The America Journal of Surgery 198(2):216-22 (Funded by SAGES Research grant)
  3. Zheng B, Taylor MD & Swanström LL (2009) An observation on surgery-related activities between surgeon and nurse during laparoscopic surgery. The America Journal of Surgery 197(4):497-502. (Funded by Legacy Health RAC Grant)
  4. Zheng B, Swanström LL (2009) Video analysis of anticipatory movements performed by the surgeons during laparoscopic procedures. Surgical Endoscopy, 23(7): 1494-8
  5. Zheng B, Denk PM, Matinec DV, Gatta P, Whitford MH & Swanström LL (2008) Building an efficient surgical team using a bench model simulation: construct validity of the legacy inanimate system for endoscopic team training (LISETT), Surgical Endoscopy, 22(4): 930-7 (SAGES Research Grant)
  6. Chang S, Waid E. Matinec DV, Zheng B & Swanström LL (2008) Impacts of verbal feedback on laparoscopic team performance. Surgical Innovation, 15(2): 143-7 (SAGES Research Grant)
  7. Zheng B, Swanström LL & MacKenzie CL (2007) A laboratory study on anticipatory movement in laparoscopic Surgery: a behavioral indicator for team collaboration. Surgical Endoscopy 21(6): 935-40 (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)
  8. Zheng B, Verjee F, & MacKenzie CL (2005) One brain or two: video analysis of an endoscopic cutting task performed by one versus two operators. Surgical Endoscopy 19(10):1388-95 (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)

Simulation technology and evaluation

  1. Hur HC, Arden D, Awtrey CS, Zheng B & Jones D (2010) The Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) test as a validated skills assessment tool in gynecology, Accepted by Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology. Nov 18, 2010
  2. Zheng B, Cassera MA,Swanström LL, Meneghetti AT, Panton ONM & Qayumi AK (2010) Maintaining forward view of the surgical site for best endoscopic practice. Accepted by Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, Sept 28, 2010
  3. Spaun GO, Zheng B, Martinec DV, Arnold BN, Swanström LL (2010) A comparison of early learning curves for complex bimanual coordination with open, laparoscopic, and flexible endoscopic instrumentation. Surgical Endoscopy 24(9):2145-55.
  4. Zheng B, Hur HC, Johnson S Swanström LL (2010) Validity of Using Fundamental Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) Program to Assess Laparoscopic Competence for Gynecologists. Surgical Endoscopy. 24(1):152-60 (Funded by SAGES Research and Education Foundation)
  5. Spaun GO, Zheng B, Swanström LL. A multitasking platform for NOTES; a bench top comparison of a new device for flexible endoscopic surgery and a standard dual channel endoscope, Surgical Endoscopy. 23 (12):2720-7
  6. Martinec DV, Gatta P, Zheng B, Denk PM, Swanström LL. Tradeoff between flexibility and maneuverability: task performance with articulating laparoscopic instruments, Surgical Endoscopy, 23 (12): 2697-2701
  7. Spaun GO, Zheng B, Martinec DV, Cassera MA, Dunst CM, Swanström LL.(2009) Bimanual coordination in NOTES: Comparing conventional dual-channel endoscope, the R-scope and a novel direct drive system. Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (GIE), 69(6):e39-45.
  8. Zheng B, Kuang AB, Henigman F, Payandeh S, Lomax AJ, Swanström LL & MacKenzie CL (2006) Effects of assembling virtual fixtures on learning a navigation task. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics 119:586-91. 2006 (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)
  9. Kuang AB, Payandeh S, Zheng B, Henigman F & MacKenzie CL (2004) Assembling virtual fixtures for guidance in training environments. HAPTICS, 367-74.

Human movement control and skills acquisition

  1. Zheng B & MacKenzie CL (2009) A comparison of human performance in grasping virtual objects by hand and with tools of different length ratios. In: The Proceedings of 53rd. Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting 1156-1160. (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)
  2. Zheng B & MacKenzie CL (2007) Kinematics of reaching and grasping with a tool. In: The Proceedings of 51st. Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting 1353-1357. (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)
  3. Zheng B & MacKenzie CL (2007) The control strategy for degrees of freedom in remote prehension with a tool. In: The Proceedings of 51st. Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting 1358-1362. (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR Award to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)
  4. Janmohamed Z, Zheng B & MacKenzie CL (2003) Aiming with the hand touching the target: the role of proprioceptive information between hands. In: The Proceedings of the 34th Association of Canadian Ergonomists Annual Conference, October 15, 2003, London, Ontario (4 pages) (Graduate Research, Funded by MSFHR to Zheng, and NSERC Strategic Grant to Dr. Mackenzie)

Completed publications

Click here to view a PDF of completed publications.

Funded projects

Click here to view funded projects. It will open in a new tab.