Songnan Wang: Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California.
Grace Kansayisa: Kigali University School of Medicine, Kigali, Rwanda.
Miguel Gasakure: University Teaching Hospital of Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda.
Faustin Ntirenganya: Department of Surgery, School of Medicine and Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda, Kigali, Rwanda.
Yihan Lin: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California. Electronic address: yihan.lin@gmail.com.
OBJECTIVES: Develop and implement a standardized surgical training curriculum for Rwandan medical interns to better prepare them for general practice at district hospitals. Assess the curriculum's impact on participants surgical knowledge and technical skills and identify areas for iterative improvement. DESIGN: A 2-day surgical curriculum combining theory-based didactics and hands-on, simulation-based skills training was developed and implemented. Rwandan medical interns were surveyed before and after participation to evaluate their comfort with various core surgical topics and skills. SETTING: The study was conducted in Kigali, Rwanda. PARTICIPANTS: 35 participated, Rwandan medical interns who had completed or were completing their surgical rotations were enrolled in the study. RESULTS: Significant improvements were observed in participants' confidence in both surgical knowledge and techniques after completing the curriculum. Participants identified simulation as a valuable training technique but reported barriers such as limited access to simulation resources. Most participants reported that the curriculum was beneficial, realistic, and something they would recommend to others. CONCLUSIONS: Rwanda faces a shortage of surgical specialists necessitating an expanded scope of practice for general practitioners, including performing common surgical procedures. Our pilot surgical skills curriculum for Rwandan interns demonstrates potential in addressing this need. Future iterations will refine the curriculum and expand its implementation to all Rwandan medical interns to enhance the surgical care that they will provide as general practitioners.
