AccScience Publishing / GTM / Volume 3 / Issue 1 / DOI: 10.36922/gtm.2795
Cite this article
65
Download
1426
Views
Journal Browser
Volume | Year
Issue
Search
News and Announcements
View All
PERSPECTIVE ARTICLE

Pixels to precision: Remote thoracic and pediatric cardiac surgery mentorship with Rods&Cones® Technology in Kigali, Rwanda

Jessica D. Blum1* Yayehyirad Mekonnen Ejigu2 Girma Tefera3 James D. Maloney4
Show Less
1 Department of Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
2 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, King Faisal Hospital, Kigali, Rwanda
3 Department of Surgery, Division of Vascular Surgery, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
4 Department of Surgery, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
Global Translational Medicine 2024, 3(1), 2795 https://doi.org/10.36922/gtm.2795
Submitted: 21 January 2024 | Accepted: 22 February 2024 | Published: 26 March 2024
© 2024 by the Author (s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

Surgery is the final frontier in global medicine; yet, access to essential surgical services in low- and middle-income countries remains a significant barrier to equitable care. With a rise in non-communicable diseases and a shortage of skilled surgeons, the need for mentorship becomes crucial to capacity building. The COVID-19 pandemic acted as a catalyst for remote mentorship, leading to the development of innovative solutions such as Rods&Cones®. Herein, we describe one example of remote mentorship conducted across a distance of more than 7,700 miles between King Faisal Hospital in Rwanda and the University of Wisconsin Hospital in the US. This paper aims to demonstrate how advances in remote mentorship technology can overcome existing barriers and aid in expanding the global surgical workforce in thoracic surgery.

Keywords
Global health
Global surgery
Remote mentorship
Mentorship
Thoracic surgery
Cardiothoracic surgery
Funding
None.
Conflict of interest
James Maloney is a consultant for Ethicon, part of the Johnson & Johnson company. He has no relevant material or financial interests that relate to the research described in this paper. The other authors declare no conflict of interest.
References
  1. Global surgery--the final frontier? Lancet. 2012;379:194. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60083-X

 

  1. World Health Organization. Ensuring Safe and Affordable Surgery. Switzerland: World Health Organization. Available from: https://www.who.int/westernpacific/activities/ensuring-safe-and-affordable-surgery [Last accessed 2023 Nov 18].

 

  1. Weiser TG, Regenbogen SE, Thompson KD, et al. An estimation of the global volume of surgery: A modelling strategy based on available data. Lancet. 2008;372(9633):139-144. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(08)60878-8

 

  1. Gouda HN, Charlson F, Sorsdahl K, et al. Burden of non-communicable diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, 1990-2017: Results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. Lancet Glob Health. 2019;7(10):e1375-e1387. doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(19)30374-2

 

  1. Quantifying International Access to Cardiac, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery: The American Association for Thoracic Surgery. AATS; 2022. Available from: https://www.aats. org/resources/quantifying-international-access-to-cardiac-thoracic-vascular-surgery [Last accessed on 18 Nov 2023].

 

  1. World Health Organization. (n.d.). A Universal Truth: No Health without a Workforce. World Health Organization. Available from: https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/ hrh_universal_truth [Last accessed on 2023 Nov 26].

 

  1. Our Story in Remote Surgical Assistance-Rods and Cones. Rods and Cones; 2023. Available from: https://rods-cones. com/about-us [Last accessed on 2023 Nov 26].

 

  1. Ponsky TA, Bobanga ID, Schwachter M, et al. Transcontinental telementoring with pediatric surgeons: Proof of concept and technical considerations. J Laparoendosc Adv Surg Tech A. 2014;24(12):892-896. doi: 10.1089/lap.2014.0363

 

  1. McCullough MC, Kulber L, Sammons P, Santos P, Kulber DA. Google glass for remote surgical tele-proctoring in low- and middle-income countries: A feasibility study from Mozambique. Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2018;6(12):e1999. doi: 10.1097/GOX.0000000000001999

 

  1. Palumbo A. Microsoft HoloLens 2 in medical and healthcare context: State of the art and future prospects. Sensors (Basel). 2022;22(20):7709. doi: 10.3390/s22207709

 

  1. Bui DT, Barnett T, Hoang H, Chinthammit W. Development of a framework to support situational tele-mentorship of rural and remote practice. Med Teach. 2023;45(6):642-649. doi: 10.1080/0142159X.2022.2150607
Share
Back to top
Global Translational Medicine, Electronic ISSN: 2811-0021 Print ISSN: 3060-8600, Published by AccScience Publishing