G. Klazura4, 6, 10, M. Cheung7, E. Ludi1, N. Bell9, E. Rodas5, J. Rickard11, R. Riviello3, 12, G. Tefera2, D. Ozgediz6, M. Boeck6 1Emory University School Of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA 2University Of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA 3Brigham And Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA 4University Of Illinois At Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA 5Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA 6University Of California – San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA 7Yale University School Of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA 9American College Of Surgeons, Chicago, IL, USA 10Loyola University Chicago Stritch School Of Medicine, Maywood, IL, USA 11University Of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA 12Harvard School Of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
Introduction:
Globally, more than two billion people lack access to surgery. The American College of Surgeons (ACS) Operation Giving Back (OGB) Global Health Competencies for Surgeons: Cognitive and System Skills Course was created in 2016 to provide a foundation of principles for surgeons interested in pursuing global surgery work. The aim of this study was to survey former course participants regarding subsequent global experiences, the application of course content, and feedback on covered subjects in order to better inform future course offerings.
Methods:
A nineteen-question survey of multiple choice and short answer questions with branching logic was collaboratively developed. A link to the voluntary, anonymous Qualtrics survey was sent three times (May 2020, July 2020, March 2021) to participants via provided contact information. Survey responses were downloaded to Excel for further analysis.
Results:
Of N=179 course participants from four annual course offerings, N=175 were reached with N=34 (19%) responding to the survey. Roughly half of respondents (N=16, 47%) were trainees at the time of the course and most (N=27, 79%) specialized in general surgery. Eighty-two percent (N=28) had participated in global surgery work since the course, most commonly via short-term clinical missions, research, and/or educational outreach, and most often in Africa (N=20, 59%). For those who did not engage in global surgery projects after the course (N=6, 18%), the most important barriers included lack of funding or institutional support, as well as safety concerns. Confidence in course subjects, on a Likert scale from 1 to 5 (most confident), was highest for the role of surgery in global health (4.2) and ethical challenges (4.1) and lowest for obtaining funding (2.9) and conducting research (2.8). Nineteen (56%) respondents networked with course faculty since attending, making this the most utilized resource. Participants considered ethical challenges, unmet needs in global surgery, and effective partnerships as the most useful topics to continue in future courses.
Conclusion:
Survey results reveal participants have applied course resources to a variety of contexts and have high confidence in historically challenging content areas. Respondents endorsed continuing inclusion of ethics, unmet needs, and partnerships, with a greater focus on funding and research to boost confidence in these subjects. Survey results will allow content to be tailored to student and discipline needs, providing aspiring global surgeons with a strong foundation on which to build their work. We hope this course increases the number and quality of surgeons who pursue global surgery, with the downstream effect of improving capacity and decreasing burden.
