International surgery and the University of Connecticut experience: lessons from a short-term surgical mission.
BACKGROUND
Surgery is gradually gaining recognition within the international public health community as an essential component to sustainable improvements in health care in resource-poor areas. In this article, we document the University of Connecticut experience with international surgical missions, and we offer avenues for optimization of these efforts.


METHODS
A one-week elective trip to San José de Chiquitos, Bolivia to provide essential general surgical care to a rural, underserved population. We collaborated with local health-care personnel in both intraoperative and perioperative care.


RESULTS
Forty-one major cases were performed over a week-long period. The majority of cases were open cholecystectomy, but a variety of emergency and elective surgical cases were performed. There were no postoperative complications over a three-month follow-up.


CONCLUSIONS
International surgical trips are an essential component of public health initiatives abroad; surgery can provide a vital role in the health care of underserved populations. Few domestic programs have formal international surgical curricula within the residency program; we offer beneficial results based on a short-term model. Future studies should focus on the development of sustainable, surgical programs that focus on education of local health-care personnel in underserved regions.
Hughes
Christopher
C
Department of Surgery, The University of Connecticut Integrated General Surgery Residency Program, Farmington, USA.
Zani
Sabino
S
O'Connell
Brendan
B
Daoud
Ibrahim
I
D001838:Bolivia; D002608:Charities; D003237:Connecticut; D013502:General Surgery / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D008493:Medical Missions; D008507:Medically Underserved Area; D012577:Schools, Medical; D013997:Time Factors; D014495:Universities