Expansion of Reconstructive Surgical Capacity in Vietnam: Experience from the ReSurge Global Training Program.

BACKGROUND: Building local surgical capacity in low-income and middle-income countries is critical to addressing the unmet global surgical need. Visiting educator programs can be utilized to train local surgeons, but the quantitative impact on surgical capacity has not yet been fully described. The authors' objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of training utilizing a visiting educator program on local reconstructive surgical capacity in Vietnam. METHODS: A reconstructive surgery visiting educator program was implemented in Vietnam. Topics of training were based on needs defined by local surgeons, including those specializing in hand surgery, microsurgery, and craniofacial surgery. A retrospective analysis of annual case numbers corresponding to covered topics between the years 2014 and 2019 at each hospital was conducted to determine reconstructive surgical volume and procedures per surgeon over time. Direct costs, indirect costs, and value of volunteer services for each trip were calculated. RESULTS: Over the course of 5 years, 12 visiting educator trips were conducted across three hospitals in Vietnam. Local surgeons subsequently independently performed a total of 2018 operations corresponding to topics covered during visiting educator trips, or a mean of 136 operations annually per surgeon. Within several years, the hospitals experienced an 81.5 percent increase in surgical volume for these reconstructive clinical conditions, and annual case volume continues to increase over time. Total costs were $191,290, for a mean cost per trip of $15,941. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical capacity can be successfully expanded by utilizing targeted visiting educator trips to train local reconstructive surgeons. Local providers ultimately independently perform an increased volume of complex procedures and provide further training to others.

Economic Evaluation of a Global Reconstructive Surgery Visiting Educator Program.

Objective: The objective of this study was to quantify the cost-effectiveness and economic value of a reconstructive surgery visiting educator trip program in a resource-constrained setting. Background: Reconstructive surgical capacity remains inadequate in low- and middle-income countries, resulting in chronic disability and a significant economic toll. Education and training of the local surgical workforce to sustainably expand capacity have been increasingly encouraged, but economic analyses of these interventions are lacking. Methods: Data were analyzed from 12 visiting educator trips and independently-performed surgical procedures at 3 Vietnamese hospitals between 2014 and 2019. A cost-effectiveness analysis was performed using standardized methodology and thresholds to determine cost-effectiveness. Sensitivity analyses were performed with disability weights, discounting, and costs from different perspectives. Economic benefit was estimated using both the human capital method and the value of a statistical life method, and a benefit-cost ratio was computed. Results: In the base case analysis, the visiting educator program was very cost-effective at $581 per disability-adjusted life year (DALY) averted. Economic benefit was between $21·6 million and $29·3 million, corresponding to a 12- to 16-fold return on investment. Furthermore, when considering only costs to the organization, the cost decreased to $61 per DALY averted, with a 113- to 153-fold return on investment for the organization. Conclusions: Visiting educator programs, which build local reconstructive surgical capacity in limited-resource environments, can be very cost-effective with significant economic benefit and return on investment. These findings may help guide organizations, donors, and policymakers in resource allocation in global surgery.

Use of Social Media to Teach Global Reconstructive Surgery: Initiation of a Secret Facebook Group.

The ReSurge Global Training Program (RGTP) is a model for building reconstructive surgery capacity in low- and middle-income countries.1 The aim of this study is to assess attitudes toward social media, to develop an initial RGTP Facebook Education Group, and to assess the early results of the group's implementation. METHODS: A survey of the RGTP community assessed group demographic, interests, concerns, and familiarity with Facebook from July to August of 2018. A "secret" Facebook group was launched on October 30, 2018. Narrated lectures were posted weekly to the group. Educational cases were shared on the group's discussion page. Facebook "Group Insights" and individual post review were used to obtain group statistics. RESULTS: Senior faculty were less likely to have an existing Facebook account (58% vs 93%, P < 0.05). Trainees were more confident using Facebook (97% vs 54%, P < 0.05) and favored viewing the training curriculum through Facebook (93.0%, P < 0.05). At 6 months, the group enrolled 103 members from 14 countries. Twenty-two lectures were posted, obtaining an average of 59.4 views (range, 36-78). Fourteen cases were presented for group discussion with an average of 61.1 views (range, 43-87). CONCLUSIONS: The RGTP Facebook group has continued to expand in its early months. This group allows our community to view RGTP's training curriculum, while providing global access to expert opinion and collaboration. The secret Facebook group can be used as an effective and easy-to-use platform for educational outreach in global reconstructive surgery.