International plastic surgery missions: a framework for resident education using the CanMEDS competencies

Residency education has shifted over the past decade in an attempt to graduate well-rounded physicians. There is a recognition that a physician's abilities must extend beyond medical knowledge. The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada introduced the CanMEDS physician competency framework in 2005. The framework provides 7 areas of competencies that are aimed at providing improved patient care. These competencies are medical expert, communicator, collaborator, manager, health advocate, scholar, and professional. Teaching and evaluating many of these competencies is often challenging for residency training programs. We believe that international surgical missions provide a prime opportunity to teach and evaluate all CanMEDS' roles.Plastic surgery is a field with many different organizations involved in international surgery. Many plastic surgery training programs offer opportunities for residents to become involved in these international surgical missions. Through these trips, residents gain surgical experience, see a variety and volume of clinical cases, and have the opportunity to travel to a foreign country and experience different cultures. We believe that international plastic surgery surgical missions also provide an exceptional micro environment for the teaching of CanMEDS roles. Using examples from residents' personal experiences on international plastic surgery missions to China, Mali, and Cambodia, we describe the benefits of these missions in transferring the CanMEDS competencies to resident training.