Understanding surgical education needs in Zambian residency programs from a Resident's perspective.

Introduction: Approximately 100 surgeons in Zambia serve a population of 16 million, a severe shortage in basic surgical care. Surgical education in Zambia and other low-middle income countries has not been well characterized. The aim of this study was to evaluate surgical training resources from a resident perspective.

Typhoid Fever and Acute Appendicitis: A Rare Association Not Yet Fully Formed.

Infections caused by foodborne enteric pathogens including typhoidal and non-typhoidal species can mimic symptoms of acute appendicitis. The association between such bacterial pathogens and pathology-proven acute appendicitis has been described, but this link is poorly understood. Here we describe a case of a young man with typhoid fever presenting with histology-proven acute appendicitis requiring urgent appendectomy, and provide a brief review of relevant literature to prompt more widespread recognition of this rare cause of a common surgical emergency.

Surgical registrars' perceptions of surgical training and capacity in Zambia: Results from three COSECSA affiliated training hospitals.

Background: Surgery is a vital component of a comprehensive health system, but there are often personnel limitations in resource constrained areas. Zambia provides post graduate surgical training through two systems to help address this shortage. However, no studies have analyzed surgical trainees' perceptions of these programs.

Teaching global health with simulations and case discussions in a medical student selective.

Background: Among US medical schools, demand for Global Health (GH) programs continues to grow. At the same time, cultural competency training has become a priority for medical students who will care for an increasingly diverse US patient population. We describe a pilot period for a new GH Selective designed to introduce medical students to global medicine and enhance culturally-sensitive communication skills.

Twelve tips for improving the effectiveness of web-based multimedia instruction for clinical learners.

Using educational technology does not necessarily make medical education more effective. There are many different kinds of technology available to the contemporary medical teacher and what constitutes effective use may depend on the technology, the learning situation and many other factors. Web-based multimedia instruction (WBMI) provides learners with self-directed independent learning opportunities based on didactic material enhanced with multimedia features such as video and animations.

Medical students as human subjects in educational research.

Introduction: Special concerns often arise when medical students are themselves the subjects of education research. A recently completed large, multi-center randomized controlled trial of computer-assisted learning modules for surgical clerks provided the opportunity to explore the perceived level of risk of studies where medical students serve as human subjects by reporting on: 1) the response of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) at seven institutions to the same study protocol; and 2) the thoughts and feelings of students across study sites about being research subjects.

Methods: From July 2009 to August 2010, all third-year medical students at seven collaborating institutions were eligible to participate.

International experience, electives, and volunteerism in surgical training: a survey of resident interest.

Background: Sustainable international surgery expertise is more frequently being discussed in the US surgical community. At the resident level, there is discussion about incorporating international experience into residency training, but current opportunities for residents are limited and often require personal funding and use of vacation time. This study analyzed resident interest in acquiring international experience.

Preliminary evaluation of the Web Initiative for Surgical Education (WISE-MD).

Background: Major changes in health care delivery and financing have negatively impacted students' experience during the surgery clerkship, particularly their exposure to physicians' decision-making processes and to the continuity of patient care. In response to these dilemmas in surgical education, we have developed the Web Initiative for Surgical Education (WISE-MD), a comprehensive surgery clerkship curriculum delivered through multimedia teaching modules and designed to enhance exposure to surgical disease and clinical reasoning.

Methods: As part of the process of creating WISE-MD, we conducted preliminary studies to assess the impact of this computer-assisted approach on students' knowledge, clinical reasoning, and satisfaction.

Teaching Communication Skills on the Surgery Clerkship.

Background: Physician communication skills, linked to important patient outcomes, are rarely formally addressed after the pre-clinical years of medical school. We implemented a new communication skills curriculum during the third year Surgery Clerkship which was part of a larger curriculum revision found in a controlled trial to significantly improve students' overall communication competence.

Description: In three 2 hour workshops students, learned to address common communication challenges in surgery: patient education, shared decision-making, and delivering bad news.

Impact of mandatory resident work hour limitations on medical students' interest in surgery.

Background: The number of US medical students applying for general surgery residency has been declining. Recent studies have shown that the issue of "controllable lifestyle" has become a critical factor in medical students' decision-making process. We postulate that widespread implementation of resident work hour limitations would bolster medical students' interest in pursuing surgical careers.

Attitudes of applicants for surgical residency toward work hour limitations.

Background: There is an ongoing debate regarding the merits of resident work-hour limitations. We postulated that this issue would be a factor in the decision-making process of applicants to surgical residency.

Methods: Candidates for surgical residency at a university-based program completed an anonymous survey during their visit.