Course Review: Yorkshire Clinical Courses - Essential Plastic Surgery Skills for Junior Doctors Course

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training
• Plastic Surgery Simulation

Background:

• Medical curricula often lack formal plastic surgery education, leaving many students unprepared.
• A significant percentage of medical students (70%) complete training without specialty exposure.
• Junior trainees require structured programs to develop foundational surgical competencies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the Essential Plastic Surgery Skills (EPS) course as a solution for plastic surgery educational deficits.
• To assess the effectiveness of simulation-based learning for junior surgical trainees.
• To provide a controlled environment for acquiring essential plastic surgery skills.

Main Methods:

• A 2-day simulation-based Essential Plastic Surgery Skills (EPS) course was conducted.
• The course utilized biological specimens, porcine, and poultry models for practical skill development.
• Faculty included 17 experienced educators offering a 1:3 teacher-to-student ratio with personalized feedback.
• Participants ranged from medical students to general practitioners globally.

Main Results:

• Course evaluations indicated sufficient simulation equipment and time for skill development.
• Participants engaged in fundamental skills (skin closure, excision, tendon repair) and advanced techniques (burns, grafting, flaps, microsurgery).
• The program facilitated skill acquisition in a supportive, controlled learning environment.

Conclusions:

• The Essential Plastic Surgery Skills (EPS) course effectively bridges undergraduate and postgraduate training gaps.
• Simulation-based learning in the EPS course addresses practical skill deficits in plastic surgery.
• The program offers valuable exposure and transferable surgical skills for trainees.