An Evaluation of the Role of Simulation Training for Teaching Surgical Skills in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Background: An estimated 5 billion people worldwide lack access to any surgical care, whilst surgical conditions account for 11-30% of the global burden of disease. Maximizing the effectiveness of surgical training is imperative to improve access to safe and essential surgical care on a global scale. Innovative methods of surgical training have been used in sub-Saharan Africa to attempt to improve the efficiency of training healthcare workers in surgery.

Snapshot of surgical activity in rural Ethiopia: is enough being done?

Background: Surgical conditions are responsible for a significant burden of the disease prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa. However, there is a paucity of data surrounding the amount and availability of surgical care. Few surveys exist that document current rates of surgical activity in the low-income setting, and most figures rely on the country estimates.