Motivation

Aims

CME requirements

Study method

Challenges

Cultural differences

Results

Piet de Boer’s recently published book Orthopedic and Trauma Surgeons: CPD in Community Hospitals. A study of different educational needs and preferences." takes a close look at the reality facing orthopedic and trauma surgeons practicing at small to medium-sized hospitals around the world.

 

The vast majority of orthopedic care worldwide is provided by this group of surgeons yet very little research had been collected about their unique needs when it comes to continuing professional development (CPD).

 

A snapshot of the global diversity

“Culminating 2 years of study, this publication shares our discoveries on the learning gaps and preferences of community hospital surgeons. It reveals the challenges these surgeons face when attempting to solve unique clinical problems and meet their medical education requirements, suggesting potential solutions,” says Piet de Boer about the main thrust of his book.

Through face-to-face interviews with 50 individuals not connected with AO the study is able to capture a snapshot of the global diversity regarding the needs, preferences, and barriers surgeons encounter when attempting to access CPD.

 

Four aspects of CPD

The following four features of CPD were of particular interest to the author and questions were loosely wrapped around each:

 

1. Learning in a community hospital
2. Informal learning
3. Cultural differences
4. Impact of CME regulations on community hospital doctors

 

The book presents country-specific results, including direct quotes from interviewees, related to these four topics. This offers an  interesting view on the different cultural approaches to education and the varied attitudes surrounding each country’s continuing medical education regulatory environment.

 

The author also describes the official CPD regulations within each country and identifies where these are inconsistent with the reality for surgeons.

 

The conclusion of the book  looks at the interview responses as a whole, identifying trends and discrepancies and pointing out opportunities for the AO to better engage this group of surgeons.

 

Interesting findings

All surgeons, regardless of where they are based or what size of hospital they work at, look for further education to solve clinical problems. Surgeons at teaching hospitals usually have a large pool of experts to consult. However, the small size of community hospital units means that when faced with an unfamiliar or particularly complex clinical problem, surgeons generally do not have mentors or experienced colleagues to discuss the problem.

Surgeons in developing countries are most often not able to access education due to financial limitations. This is coupled with the inability to get time off to attend educational events.

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About Piet G de Boer, MA FRCS

Piet de Boer was educated at Downing College Cambridge in the field of experimental psychology and received orthopedic training from St Thomas’ Hospital London. In the early 1980’s, he co-authored the best seller “Surgical Exposures in Orthopaedics with Stanley Hoppenfeld”, which is now in its 4th edition. Appointed the first Director of AO Education in 2006, he is currently an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Hull and York Medical School in the UK, and a visiting lecturer to the University of Rijeka in Croatia. He has published many articles in peer reviewed journals, and authored four other successful books in orthopedics and education.