A consortium approach to surgical education in a developing country: Educational needs assessment
Journal
JAMA Surgery
Journal Volume
150
Journal Issue
11
Pages
1074-1078
Date Issued
2015
Author(s)
Cook M
Howard B.M
Grey D
Hofmann P.B
Moren A.M
McHembe M
Essajee A
Mndeme O
Peck J
Schecter W.P.
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Surgical disease is a global health priority, and improving surgical care requires local capacity building. Single-institution partnerships and surgical missions are logistically limited. The Alliance for Global Clinical Training (hereafter the Alliance) is a consortium of US surgical departments that aims to provide continuous educational support at the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (MUHAS). To our knowledge, the Alliance is the first multi-institutional international surgical collaboration to be described in the literature. OBJECTIVE To assess if the Alliance is effectively responding to the educational needs of MUHAS and Muhimbili National Hospital surgeons. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS During an initial 13-month program (July 1, 2013, to August 31, 2014), faculty and resident teams from 3 US academic surgical programs rotated at MUHAS as physicians and teachers for 1 month each. To assess the value of the project, we administered anonymous surveys. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Anonymous surveyswere analyzed on a 5-point Likert-type scale. Free-text answers were analyzed for common themes. RESULTS During the study period, Alliance members were present at MUHAS for 8 months (1 month each). At the conclusion of the first year of collaboration, 15 MUHAS faculty and 22 MUHAS residents completed the survey. The following 6 areas of educational needs were identified: formal didactics, increased clinical mentorship, longer-term Alliance presence, equitable distribution of teaching time, improved coordination and language skills, and reciprocal exchange rotations at US hospitals. The MUHAS faculty and residents agreed that Alliance members contributed to improved patient care and resident education. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE A multi-institutional international surgical partnership is possible and leads to perceived improvements in patient care and resident learning. Alliance surgeons must continue to focus on training Tanzanian surgeons. Improving the volunteer surgeons' Swahili-language skills would be an asset. Future efforts should provide more teaching coverage, equitably distribute educational support among all MUHAS surgeons, and collaboratively develop a formal surgical curriculum. Copyright 2015 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
Other Subjects
Article; clinical competence; continuing education; developing country; follow up; human; language ability; needs assessment; outcome assessment; patient care; priority journal; resident; surgical training; surgical ward; total quality management; clinical trial; curriculum; education; female; general surgery; international cooperation; male; medical education; medical school; multicenter study; needs assessment; organization and management; program evaluation; public relations; surgery; Tanzania; United States; Competency-Based Education; Developing Countries; Education, Medical; Faculty, Medical; Female; General Surgery; Humans; Interinstitutional Relations; Internship and Residency; Male; Medical Missions, Official; Needs Assessment; Program Evaluation; Specialties, Surgical; Tanzania; United States
Type
journal article