Surgical volunteerism as a collaborative teaching activity can benefit surgical residents in low-middle income countries

Surgical care is desperately needed in low-middle income countries (LMIC). Due to small numbers of faculty in local training programs, residents have limited exposure to subspecialists. We describe a teaching activity between visiting surgeons from the U.S. and a residency program in Malawi as an example for how surgeons in high income countries can meaningfully contribute. A short-term education activity was developed where residents participated in a pre-test on pediatric surgical management, lectures, intra-operative instruction, bedside rounds and a post-test. Five residents participated and all intend to practice in sub-Saharan Africa. All residents improved their scores from the pre-test to post-test (mean 44%–91%). The residency program performs approximately 1200 major surgical cases and 800 minor surgical procedures each year, representing a broad range of general surgery. Additionally, the residents encounter a broad range of pathology. Short-term mentorship activities in partnership with an established training program can enhance surgical resident education in LMIC, particularly for subspecialty care.