• Jeffrey J Leow, Reinou S Groen, Thaim B Kamara, Sheiku S Dumbuya, T Peter Kingham, Kisito S Daoh, and Adam L Kushner.
• Surgeons OverSeas (SOS), New York, New York, USA.
• J Surg Educ. 2011 Sep 1; 68 (5): 393-6.

BackgroundSurgeons OverSeas (SOS), a New York-based organization with a mission to save lives in developing countries, conducted a surgical needs assessment in Sierra Leone in 2008 which identified a large gap in surgical knowledge. We hypothesized that knowledge transfer could be improved by conducting workshops with significant local faculty participation.DesignDescription of emergency and essential surgical care workshops (EESC) workshops and follow-up.SettingFreetown and Bo, Sierra Leone.ParticipantsInternational and local health providers in Sierra Leone.MethodsSOS organized EESC workshops in collaboration with significant local surgeons' support. Data on subsequent workshops were recorded.ResultsFifteen instructors were identified and assisted with teaching. Nine of the instructors were specialists from Sierra Leone. Each workshop lasted 3 days. Feedback was gathered after these workshops Subsequent to the SOS workshops, 8 other workshops were undertaken by local surgeons in Sierra Leone, 5 of which were organized and taught solely by local surgeons working for the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation. Three other workshops were organized with external support.ConclusionsEESC workshops organized with significant local input are useful for knowledge transfer and empower local surgeons to conduct subsequent workshops on their own.Copyright © 2011 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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