A 2-week intensive gastrointestinal endoscopy training program for pediatricians

In Japan there are limited opportunities for pediatricians to learn gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy. This study investigated whether a short-term intensive training for 2 weeks in an adult GI setting enabled pediatricians to acquire basic technical competence for pediatric GI endoscopic procedures.

This was a retrospective case series of pediatricians who underwent 2 weeks of intensive endoscopy training at an adult endoscopy unit in a community hospital. The numbers of esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) and ileocolonoscopy procedures each pediatrician performed were evaluated. All enrolled pediatricians were asked to answer questionnaires regarding the 2 week intensive GI endoscopy training program.

There were 17 enrolled pediatricians, of whom 13 were men; average age 32 years (range 27-54). The median (range) numbers of EGDs and ileocolonoscopies performed by each pediatrician during the 2-week training period were 102 (66-144) and 14 (1-48), respectively. Fifteen out of 17 pediatricians experienced more than 100 GI endoscopies during the 2 weeks. All pediatricians performed biopsies as part of some EGD procedures. All 17 pediatricians found this program satisfactory. All pediatricians became cable of performing pediatric EGD (i.e., for children ≤15 years) after this training program. Sixteen pediatricians have continued to perform pediatric GI endoscopy since this training program.

A short-term intensive training program for 2 weeks in an adult GI setting enabled pediatricians to acquire basic technical competence for pediatric endoscopic procedures.