[New concept for microsurgical education: The training academy of the German Working Group for Microsurgery of Peripheral Nerves and Vessels: Results of a 4-year evaluation].

Introduction: A recent survey among plastic surgery residents and directors of microsurgical clinics demonstrates a great interest in high- quality microsurgery education. Unfortunately, due to economic pressures, limited operating resources as well as forensic considerations, it has become a challenge to provide sufficient on-the-job training, which needs to be shifted outside of the OR. To promote microsurgical teaching, the German-speaking Working Group for Microsurgery of Peripheral Nerves and Vessels (DAM) organises two-day microsurgery academies to provide interested colleagues with a broad spectrum of microsurgical procedures. In this publication, we present the workshop concept and an evaluation of the first three years.

Material And Methods: Since 2015, a two-day workshop has been held at the BG Trauma Centre in Ludwigshafen on a yearly basis. Each day, at least three surgical procedures were performed simultaneously in the area of breast, nerve, bone/hand, extremity and lymph reconstruction, along with presentations regarding the various cases, diseases and specific operative challenges. To evaluate this course concept, we asked participants to identify their expectations and evaluate the academy and its program.

Results: The academy and its goals were demonstrated. In a second step, the evaluation, conducted by 79 % of participants, was presented. 67 % of participants were consultants or residents in their final year. 90 % worked at maximum care facilities or university hospitals. 57 % reported that less than 5 microsurgery cases are performed at their institution per week. All participants considered microsurgery to be part of their future work spectrum, with the greatest fields of interest being extremity reconstruction (90 %) or microsurgical reconstruction of the hand (80 %). All participants would recommend the course to their colleagues, but suggest improving the intraoperative video monitoring.

Discussion: This work demonstrates that hands-on academies for microsurgery are a highly relevant teaching format, which can counteract the limitations of surgical residency training. In particular, the close contact between senior and junior surgeons was considered highly relevant for building a network within German microsurgery. The overall goal of the academy is to improve teaching and increase the enthusiasm of future microsurgeons and provide a network for German microsurgeons during their training and beyond.