Initial evaluation of the "Trauma surgery course"

World Journal of Emergency Surgery, Mar 2006

Background The consequence of the low rate of penetrating injuries in Europe and the increase in non-operative management of blunt trauma is a decrease in surgeons' confidence in managing traumatic injuries has led to the need for new didactic tools. The aim of this retrospective study was to present the Corso di Chirurgia del Politrauma (Trauma Surgery Course), developed as a model for teaching operative trauma techniques, and assess its efficacy. Method the two-day course consisted of theoretical lectures and practical experience on large-sized swine. Data of the first 126 participants were collected and analyzed. Results All of the 126 general surgeons who had participated in the course judged it to be an efficient model to improve knowledge about the surgical treatment of trauma. Conclusion A two-day course, focusing on trauma surgery, with lectures and life-like operation situations, represents a model for simulated training and can be useful to improve surgeons' confidence in managing trauma patients. Cooperation between organizers of similar initiatives would be beneficial and could lead to standardizing and improving such courses.

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Initial evaluation of the "Trauma surgery course"

World Journal of Emergency Surgery Initial evaluation of the "Trauma surgery course" Gregorio Tugnoli 2 Sergio Ribaldi 1 Marco Casali 2 Stefano M Calderale 1 Massimo Coletti 1 Marco Alifano 0 Sergio N Forti Parri 0 Silvia Villani 2 Andrea Biscardi 2 M Chiara Giordano 2 Franco Baldoni 2 0 Chirurgia Toracica (Head: Dr. Maurizio Boaron) , Ospedale Maggiore, L.go Nigrisoli 2, 40133 Bologna , Italy 1 Gruppo Aperto per lo Studio del Trauma (GAST), Clinica Chirurgica d'Urgenza e di Pronto Soccorso, Universita La Sapienza , Roma, viale del Policlinico 2, 00100 Roma , Italy 2 Chirurgia d'Urgenza e del Trauma (Head: Dr. Franco Baldoni) , Dipartimento Emergenza, Ospedale Maggiore, L.go Nigrisoli 2, 40133 Bologna , Italy Background: The consequence of the low rate of penetrating injuries in Europe and the increase in non-operative management of blunt trauma is a decrease in surgeons' confidence in managing traumatic injuries has led to the need for new didactic tools. The aim of this retrospective study was to present the Corso di Chirurgia del Politrauma (Trauma Surgery Course), developed as a model for teaching operative trauma techniques, and assess its efficacy. Method: the two-day course consisted of theoretical lectures and practical experience on largesized swine. Data of the first 126 participants were collected and analyzed. Results: All of the 126 general surgeons who had participated in the course judged it to be an efficient model to improve knowledge about the surgical treatment of trauma. Conclusion: A two-day course, focusing on trauma surgery, with lectures and life-like operation situations, represents a model for simulated training and can be useful to improve surgeons' confidence in managing trauma patients. Cooperation between organizers of similar initiatives would be beneficial and could lead to standardizing and improving such courses. - Background The treatment of the thoraco-abdominal trauma has always represented a surgical challenge, owing to the peculiarity of these injuries. The need for specific training for surgeons involved in the care of these patients is justified by the difficulties in obtaining an exhaustive preoperative assessment, the need for prompt decision-making, and the often limited available resources. Furthermore, the number of surgically treated trauma patients has markedly decreased in recent years, owing to many factors, such as the low rate of penetrating trauma, the improved safety system of vehicles, innovations in diagnostic tools, and the discovery of alternative treatments [1-4]. Thus, all these factors have prompted a discussion about the future of trauma surgeon training [5,6]. A variety of didactic methods, based on "simulated training", have been suggested [7,8] and computer simulation or computer-controlled dummies have been employed. Another proposed training method involves practice on cadavers or animal models. The use of in vivo animal models, generally large-sized swine, which simulate human thorax and abdomen quite well, enables extremely realistic situations to be recreated, even to the point of putting the participants under stress [7,9,10]. In Italy the general surgeon is trained by six-year residency in General Surgery or in General and Emergency Surgery. However, there are no specific residency or university courses for Trauma Surgery. Managing trauma differs greatly from region to region; in most regions there is a lack of reference centers for thoracic and abdominal traumas, which are treated by the general surgeon of the nearest hospital, whereas specific traumas, such as neurosurgical, orthopedic and burns, are treated by specialized surgeons. Instead, in our region (Emilia-Romagna) there are three reference trauma center (Parma, Bologna, Cesena). These centers are equipped with all the necessary resources to treat all kinds of trauma. Since November 2002, a multi-trauma surgery-training course has been running in Bologna, Italy, which is mainly aimed at general surgeons, who, owing to their work, more frequently run into trauma injuries and residents who currently have less chance to gain experience in trauma surgery. The aim of this study was to present this course and discuss its purposes and educational effectiveness compared with similar courses. We also wanted to assess whether our model could be used as a qualified updating course. We present herein the results obtained in the first seven editions of the course. Materials and methods Our project is based on the experience acquired in thoracic and abdominal injuries at Maggiore Hospital of Bologna, Italy, over the last 16 years. This hospital has been a reference centre for trauma management for several years, with over 400 cases of major (ISS>25) traumas per year. Cooperation has been set up between our multidisciplinary team of Emergency Surgery and Trauma and the Open Group for the Study of Trauma (Gruppo Aperto per lo Studio del Trauma GAST) belonging to the Clinical (...truncated)


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Gregorio Tugnoli, Sergio Ribaldi, Marco Casali, Stefano M Calderale, Massimo Coletti, Marco Alifano, Sergio Parri, Silvia Villani, Andrea Biscardi, M Chiara Giordano, Franco Baldoni. Initial evaluation of the "Trauma surgery course", World Journal of Emergency Surgery, 2006, pp. 5, 1, DOI: 10.1186/1749-7922-1-5