The Training of Surgeons

Surgical training has recently undergone significant changes, driven by patient safety and the reduced training time imposed by the European Working Time Directive. There is an educational gap to the current training framework in the UK and raises the question are we training our surgeons effectively and appropriately for the role they are to perform? This book explores the diverse accounts of surgeons in training through their lived experiences of operative training and maps them to the expectations set out by the Royal Colleges of Surgery in the UK. Different approaches to training and relative success of such strategies as perceived by trainees are discussed. Great concordance in experiences exists with cognitive and social constructive theories of learning. The analysis underlines the importance of learner responsibility and the trainer to effective operative training and that learning achieved through social engagement within a community of learners should not be neglected. These findings and discussion will be of use to both surgical trainees and trainers to enhance the learning experience in the operating theatre both inside and outside the NHS.