Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Nov 2;1(11):676-682.
doi: 10.1302/2633-1462.111.BJO-2020-0095.R1.

The role of orthopaedic trainees during the COVID-19 pandemic and impact on post-graduate orthopaedic education: a four-nation survey of over 100 orthopaedic trainees

Gianluca Gonzi  1 , Rhodri Gwyn  1 , Kathryn Rooney  1 , Joseph Boktor  1 , Kunal Roy  1 , Nadia C Sciberras  2 , Huw Pullen  1 , Khitish Mohanty  3
Affiliations

The role of orthopaedic trainees during the COVID-19 pandemic and impact on post-graduate orthopaedic education: a four-nation survey of over 100 orthopaedic trainees

Gianluca Gonzi et al. Bone Jt Open. .

Abstract

Aims: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the provision of orthopaedic care across the UK. During the pandemic orthopaedic specialist registrars were redeployed to "frontline" specialties occupying non-surgical roles. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on orthopaedic training in the UK is unknown. This paper sought to examine the role of orthopaedic trainees during the COVID-19 and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on postgraduate orthopaedic education.

Methods: A 42-point questionnaire was designed, validated, and disseminated via e-mail and an instant-messaging platform.

Results: A total of 101 orthopaedic trainees, representing the four nations (Wales, England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland), completed the questionnaire. Overall, 23.1% (23/101) of trainees were redeployed to non-surgical roles. Of these, 73% (17/23) were redeployed to intensive treatment units (ITUs), 13% (3/23) to A/E, and 13%(3/23%) to general medicine. Of the trainees redeployed to ITU 100%, (17/17) received formal induction. Non-deployed or returning trainees had a significant reduction in sessions. In total, 42.9% (42/101) % of trainees were not timetabled into fracture clinic, 53% (53/101) of trainees had one allocated theatre list per week, and 63.8%(64/101) of trainees did not feel they obtained enough experience in the attached subspecialty and preferred repeating this. Overall, 93% (93/101) of respondents attended at least one weekly online webinar, with 79% (79/101) of trainees rating these as useful or very useful, while 95% (95/101) trainees attended online deanery teaching which was rated as more useful than online webinars (p = 0.005).

Conclusion: Orthopaedic specialist trainees occupied an important role during the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 has had a significant impact on orthopaedic training. It is imperative this is properly understood to ensure orthopaedic specialist trainees achieve competencies set out in the training curriculum.Cite this article: Bone Joint Open 2020;1-11:676-682.

Keywords: COVID-19; Pandemic surgery; Postgraduate education; Redeployment; Surgical Training.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Distribution of responses from the four respective nations.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Distribution of responses from respective postgraduate deaneries.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Duration of trainee redeployment to intensive treatment unit (ITU) during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Topics covered during intensive treatment unit (ITU) induction training. PPE, personal protective equipment.
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Tasks performed in ITU by redeployed Orthopaedic Specialist Trainees.
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Advertisement of online orthopaedic webinars. BOA – British Orthopaedic Association. RCS- Royal College of Surgeons.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. COVIDSurg Collaborative Elective surgery cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic: global predictive modelling to inform surgical recovery plans. Br J Surg. 2020. - PMC - PubMed
    1. United Kingdom Government Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in the UK, 2020.
    1. Nana S, Forrester LA, Levine WN. What’s Important: Redeployment of the Orthopaedic Surgeon During the COVID-19 Pandemic. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2020. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gonzi G, Gwyn R, et al. . Our experience as orthopaedic registrars redeployed to the ITU emergency rota during the COVID-19 pandemic published 14 may 2020. 2020. https://www.boa.ac.uk/policy-engagement/journal-of-trauma- - PubMed
    1. Dayananda KSS, Yasin T, et al. . COVID-19: the impact and changes to trauma services in Cardiff. 2020. https://www.boa.ac.uk/policy-engagement/journal-of-trauma-orthopaedics/j... (date last accessed 19 May 2020).