About

We are fundraising to help with the costs of a small team from the Association of Surgeons in Training (ASiT) charity visiting resource-poor countries to teach ASiT's 'Foundation Skills in Surgery' Course to local medical students. ASiT's 'Foundation Skills in Surgery' Course has been successfully run throughout the UK and Ireland for several years, and teaches medical students and junior doctors the fundamental techniques required in surgery such as safe surgical practice, sterile technique, knot tying and suturing. In September 2014 ASiT piloted the first overseas foundation skills in surgery course in the Kigali, Rwanda. On qualification Rwandan doctors start work in local community hospitals, often alone as the only doctor serving the area. This includes responsibility for emergency surgery, such as c-sections or appendectomies. Good surgical skills are essential at an early stage! Vimal Gokani, Ed Fitzgerald, Andi Beamish, Rhiannon Harries, Will Muirhead and Aneel Bhangu, all surgical trainees in the UK, represented ASiT as course faculty on this pilot trip. The pilot course was highly rated by the Rwandan medical students. For further details of the pilot course visit http://www.asit.org/news/FSS_Rwanda_2014 In light of the success of this pilot trip we are returning to Rwanda in March 2015 and to eventually roll the course out in other resource-poor settings internationally. ASiT is extremely grateful to the Surgical Royal College of Surgeons of England, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow and the Lifebox Foundation for supporting the pilot mission. All donations will be used wholly and directly to support this and future missions - thank you! Founded in 1976, ASiT is a professional body and educational charity working to promote excellence in surgical training across all ten surgical specialties in the UK and Republic of Ireland. ASiT is independent of the Surgical Royal Colleges and is run by trainees for trainees. ASiT functions through the input of its elected specialty and regional representatives, and serves the needs of trainees beyond its formal membership through training courses, and trainee grants, prizes and fellowships. Website: www.asit.org Follow our visit to Rwanda and updates from the course on Twitter @ASiTofficial Follow updates on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/ASiT.org Email us for more information: info@asit.org