Jeremy Ward on HExN / NDA / RCSEd Nepal visit Sep-Oct 2022
/In late September we travelled to Nepal to run a series of surgical courses and engage with surgeons there to discuss future potential collaboration.
The UK team consisted of:
Mike Griffin OBE, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd)
Stuart Clark, Consultant Maxillo-facial Surgeon in Manchester and Council member of RCSEd
Kamal Aryal, Consultant Surgeon and Chairman of the Nepalese Doctors’ Association (NDA).
Ken Walker, Consultant Surgeon
Jeremy Ward Consultant Surgeon and Chairman of Health Exchange Nepal (HExN)
Chris Ball Consultant Surgeon
The team kicked off with a one day course at the Nepalese Army Institute of Medical Sciences where approximately 30 senior students and interns attended a Future Surgeons course where they learned and practised basic skills such as suturing, knot-tying and excision of skin lesions.
Following this we moved to Dhulikhel Hospital where we run our well-established RCSEd-endorsed three day laparoscopic surgery course. It was great to be back amongst friends after a 3 year gap due to the Covid19 pandemic. We had a day of interactive lectures and case discussions before two days using laparoscopic simulators and spending time in theatre, giving our delegates experience in laparoscopic cases. During this time Stuart also took the opportunity to visit a charitable maxillofacial hospital in Janakpur.
On returning to Kathmandu Ken, Stuart, Kamal and Jeremy ran a RCSEd NOTSS (non-technical skills for surgeons) course in conjunction with the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital. There was great engagement from delegates and feedback was excellent.
Mike Griffin arrived that afternoon and RCSEd held a roadshow to engage with surgeons from Nepal, attended by approximately 60 surgeons. Mike talked about the work of the College and other discussions included the college international Deanery in the UK, use of simulation in training and what the College could do to support surgeons in Nepal. There appeared great enthusiasm for further collaboration.
The following morning we flew to Pokhara and travelled to Ghandruk for the first of four wonderful days trekking in the Annapurna region, culminating in an ascent of Poon Hill for magnificent views of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri ranges as the sun came up.
Back in Pokhara we were delighted to attend an evening meeting of the Society of Surgeons of Nepal and then run our second two day laparoscopic surgery course at Manipal Medical College, again with great engagement from delegates.
Mike Griffin also took the opportunity to meet stakeholders including representatives of the Nepalese Medical Council and the British Ambassador to discuss Healthcare and training in Nepal, and potential further College involvement.
After a very busy two weeks we departed in different ways: Mike and Stuart to the RCSEd conference in Chennai, Kamal to spend time with his family, Ken to visit old colleagues in Tansen, and Chris and Jeremy back to Kathmandu before heading home. This two week trip was extremely busy but equally rewarding in terms of educational activity achieved, discussion of potential future collaboration and RCSEd involvement. Most of all it was great to be back amongst friends and to enjoy each others’ company in part of the world that we love.
Thanks to all our friends in Nepal who made us so welcome, and to Chris, Ken, Stuart and Mike who made such great travel and work companions. We very much appreciate the support of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in developing further links. Thanks also to Satyan Rajbhandari for unstinting work behind the scenes in planning the trip, but most of all, thanks to Kamal Aryal who worked tirelessly throughout to ensure that everything went smoothly from start to finish.