Essential surgical skills in rural hospitals: a CPD programme

[摘要] English: General practitioners have to deal with a variety of conditions, challenges and diseases.Currently there is little known about surgical practice and the surgical skills required to dealwith it in rural South Africa.The aim of this study was to acquire an understanding of the current surgical practice ofgeneral practitioners in rural areas and identify the essential surgical skills needed for ruralSouth Africa. The purpose of the study was to determine the contents of a Short LearningProgramme in Essential Surgical Skills in Rural South Africa.The research consisted of a relevant literature search and document analysis to ascertainthe current national and international scope of rural surgery, available programmes and theessential contents and outcomes thereof. Attention was also given to curriculum design,HPCSA guidelines for CPD points, learning tools and situations to acquire surgical skills andthe development of short learning programmes.The current GP surgical practice for practitioners in rural areas was evaluated through theuse of a Likert-type questionnaire, this was also employed to determine the essentialcontent and outcomes for a short learning programme.The results of the research was applied to design a Short Learning Programme for EssentialSurgical Skills in Rural South Africa. It is my recommendation that this programme is rolledout in the second part of 2017 at the University of the Free State. I trust it will contributeto surgical care not only in South Africa, but internationally as well.

[发布机构] University of the Free State