At the department of surgery we have established collaboration with Apex trauma institute affiliated with the All India Institute of Medical sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, India. The apex trauma institute is involved in establishing the concept of all components of a Trauma System not only amongst the policymakers but also amongst the health care professionals (surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, anesthesiologists, emergency physicians and nurses) in India.
We are personally involved with the development of a curriculum for acute care surgery in India and delivered a set of lectures in New Delhi, India in November, 2010 under the auspices of Indian Society for Trauma and acute care (ISTAC). With departmental support, we have also established a travelling program where the faculty from AIIMS visit the UM trauma burn and critical program for a period of five weeks. At the conclusion of the visit each of the faculty are required to complete two proposals to be presented to the Indian Council of Medical Education and Research (ICMR) in India.
Finally the department of surgery was strongly represented within the medical school team accompanying the President of the University of Michigan, Dr. Mary Sue Coleman during her visit to All India Institute of Medical Sciences, India on November 14-21, 2013. Recently the department has successfully submitted multiple proposals for the competitive US-India collaborative jointly sponsored by the NIH and the department of Bio-technology in India.
I had the pleasure of joining the Trauma and Pediatric Surgery teams at AIIMS for 3 weeks in November, 2013. I had a broad exposure to surgical care at AIIMS, spanning the operating theatre, trauma bay, and intensive care unit. The unique clinical experiences there - tropical surgical disease, late presenting surgical problems, frequent and unusual operative trauma, congenital surgical problems rarely seen in the US, diseases of poverty, and staggering socioeconomic considerations - made for a priceless educational experience. In addition, I was able to make lasting friendships with surgical trainees at AIIMS, who share an interest in international surgical educational collaboration. This will hopefully lay the foundation for an ongoing senior resident exchange between our institutions. - Farokh Demehri M.D., PGY4 Surgery Resident