Higher surgical training opportunities in the general hospital setting; getting the balance right
I Robertson1, O Traynor, W Khan
1Department of Surgery, Mayo General Hospital, Castlebar, Co Mayo, Ireland, irobertson@me.com.
Background:
The general hospital can play an important role in training of higher surgical trainees (HSTs) in Ireland and abroad. Training opportunities in such a setting have not been closely analysed to date.
Aims:
The aim of this study was to quantify operative exposure for HSTs over a 5-year period in a single institution.
Methods:
Analysis of electronic training logbooks (over a 5-year period, 2007-2012) was performed for general surgery trainees on the higher surgical training programme in Ireland. The most commonly performed adult and paediatric procedures per trainee, per year were analysed.
Results:
Standard general surgery operations such as herniae (average 58, range 32-86) and cholecystectomy (average 60, range 49-72) ranked highly in each logbook. The most frequently performed emergency operations were appendicectomy (average 45, range 33-53) and laparotomy for acute abdomen (average 48, range 10-79). Paediatric surgical experience included appendicectomy, circumcision, orchidopexy and hernia/hydrocoele repair. Overall, the procedure most commonly performed in the adult setting was endoscopy, with each trainee recording an average of 116 (range 98-132) oesophagogastroduodenoscopies and 284 (range 227-354) colonoscopies.
Conclusions:
General hospitals continue to play a major role in the training of higher surgical trainees. Analysis of the electronic logbooks over a 5-year period reveals the high volume of procedures available to trainees in a non-specialist centre. Such training opportunities are invaluable in the context of changing work practices and limited resources.
