title: Training military surgeons: a challenge for the future.
abstract: The last 10 years has seen a reduction in defense spending and a contraction in military force size in all NATO countries. This has had a direct effect on military medical capability. In some allied countries, this reduction has extended to the virtual disappearance of independent military hospitals. Military surgeons are now few in number, and fewer still have had recent operational experience. This article addresses the problem and offers some solutions.
authors.affiliation: Gauteng Provincial Government Emergency Medical Services, University of The Witwatersrand, P.O. Box 1685, Gauteng, South Africa.
authors.forename: Campbell
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: MacFarlane
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ryan
mesh_terms: D013502:General Surgery / Q000193:education*; D006772:Hospitals, Military; D006801:Humans; D008887:Military Medicine / Q000193:education*; D014481:United States