Providing outreach continuing education in countries with limited resources

Abstract

Obtaining continuing education can be difficult in countries with limited resources. Members of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America (POSNA) have developed a program for providing outreach continuing education courses in pediatric orthopaedics. POSNA members provide their own transportation to the host country, while the orthopaedic physicians along with the educational institutions in the host country in turn provide the support needed to carry out the courses. They also provide lodging, meals, and local transportation. Since its inception in 1998, 30 courses have been conducted in 19 countries with limited resources. The program has expanded to develop a partnership with the European Pediatric Orthopaedic Society. The protocol for organizing the courses is discussed.

Fig. 1

The first continuing education course was produced in Port Au Prince, Haiti, in 1998 as a cooperative venture between Société Haitienne de Traumatologie et d’Orthopedie (Haitian Orthopaedic Society) and the Department of Orthopaedics at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas.