Exploring the knowledge and attitudes of Cameroonian medical students towards global surgery: A web-based survey.

INTRODUCTION:Global surgery is a growing field studying the determinants of safe and affordable surgical care and advocating to gain the global health community's attention. In Cameroon, little is known about the level of knowledge and attitudes of students. Our survey aimed to describe the knowledge and attitudes of Cameroonian medical students towards global surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS:We performed an anonymous online survey of final-year Cameroonian medical students. Mann-Whitney U test and Spearman correlation analysis were used for bivariate analysis, and the alpha value was set at 0.05. Odds ratios and their 95% confidence intervals were calculated. RESULTS:204 respondents with a mean age of 24.7 years (±2.0) participated in this study. 58.3% were male, 41.6% had previously heard or read about global surgery, 36.3% had taken part in a global surgery study, and 10.8% had attended a global surgery event. Mercy Ships was well known (46.5%), and most students believed that surgical interventions were more costly than medical treatments (75.0%). The mean score of the global surgery evaluation was 47.4% (±29.6%), and being able to recognize more global surgery organizations was correlated with having assumed multiple roles during global surgery studies (p = 0.008) and identifying more global surgery indicators (p = 0.04). Workforce, infrastructure, and funding were highlighted as the top priorities for the development of global surgery in Cameroon. CONCLUSION:Medical students are conscious of the importance of surgical care. They lack the opportunities to nurture their interest and should be taught global surgery concepts and skills

Assessing the presence of sustainability education in the curriculum of medical students and surgical trainees in Africa: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract Background and Aims Integrating sustainability principles into medical and surgical curricula raises awareness and empowers future healthcare professionals to adopt sustainable practices, reducing the environmental impact of surgical care. This study aims to assess the presence of sustainability education in African medical schools and surgical residency curricula to inform policymakers and educators in African healthcare systems. Methods This cross‐sectional study was undertaken through an online survey among medical students and surgical trainees in African countries to describe the presence of sustainability education in surgical training programs and medical curricula across Africa. The results of this survey were reported in accordance with the Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E‐Surveys (CHERRIES). Results A total of 141 participants from 17 countries responded to our e‐survey, primarily consisting of undergraduate medical students (92.2%, n = 130). Only 9.2% of participants reported familiarity with the concept of sustainability in surgical care, and 60.3% stated that they had yet to receive any education on sustainability. Waste management was the most commonly taught sustainability topic among those who confirmed the presence of sustainability education in their curricula. Additionally, 76% of participants reported not participating in sustainability‐related projects during their training. Conclusion This study highlights the urgent need for comprehensive integration of sustainability principles in surgical care and identifies barriers, such as a lack of awareness and resources to this integration. Addressing these gaps and implementing the suggested approaches can lead to more environmentally conscious and socially responsible surgical systems in Africa