Association for Academic Surgery (AAS)
Inspiring and Developing Young Academic Surgeons
The Academic Surgeon is the official blog of the AAS. We post anywhere from one to three times a week and our contributors will focus on issues relevant to young academic surgeons, residents, fellows, and even medical students.
If you would like to contribute, please submit your post here: https://www.aasurg.org/the-academic-surgeon-blog-submission/
One of the most challenging aspects of medical care at government hospitals here in Uganda is the fee structure. Several years ago, Uganda instituted universal health coverage for its population. This ambitious program allowed for free care at all the nation’s public hospitals. Patients in Uganda can go to a district hospital or a referral …
Following Jonathan Abelson’s recent blog post with spot-on advice for residents beginning their research years, I began thinking about what happens at the end of a research commitment. As a resident entering my final year in the lab, I have begun preparing myself to re-enter the clinical realm next year. In my unofficial polling of …
The Association of Academic Surgery is gearing up for the Fundamentals of Surgical Research (FSRC) and the Early Career Development Courses (ECDC). This year, the Fall Courses will be held on October 21st – the Saturday before the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress – on the beautiful University of California San Diego campus. The two …
As surgeons we sit in an interesting position when it comes to surgical technology. Most of us spend a good portion of our day using cutting edge biomedical devices, but we are often disappointed when they do not live up to our expectations. Unfortunately, our involvement often ends there. We either accept the device as …
I am very lucky to be a part of a residency program that encourages academic enrichment years. My co-residents have all engaged in 1-3 years of clinical research, pursued additional degrees such as Masters of Public Health or basic science research. Training at an academic institution, I was impressed by my attendings’ knowledge of the …
The Association of Academic Surgery is gearing up for the Fundamentals of Surgical Research (FSRC) and the Early Career Development Courses (ECDC). This year, the Fall Courses will be held on October 21st – the Saturday before the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress – on the beautiful University of California San Diego campus. The two …
In research, despite painstaking preparation, things can still go wrong. This is especially true in global surgery research. This year, I conducted a community-based survey on injury in Cameroon, which involved maneuvering a fairly large team into extremely rural communities. At baseline, this required understanding the actual physical location of remote rural communities in Cameroon …
Unless you have your own personal mentor willing to walk you around to make introductions to academic surgeons, it can be very difficult or even awkward to network with people who you look up to. By being active on social media, it is easy to learn who is active in various surgical fields and just …
The Association for Academic Surgery is home to some of the best and brightest surgical investigators in the world. One only need to look back on the past and current leaders of this organization to see the profound impact that these individuals have had on the field of surgery. As scientific knowledge advances, so too …
While performing a hernia exam, a patient told the female resident that he usually got a “special reward after a woman handled his testicles.” His meaning was clear, and he seemed to consider this a perfectly reasonable thing to say to a doctor. When the resident came out to present the patient, she mentioned what …
