Orthopaedic outreach is when Australian orthopaedic surgeons lend their skills to colleagues overseas.
When done best, they leave the patients and surgeons better equipped to manage moving forward.
Recently Brian and some other australian orthopaedic surgeons flew to Vietnam to volunteer at a hospital in Hanoi.
The surgeons in Vietnam are amazing. Their capacity to manage complex trauma is second to none. Unfortunately, their experience with motorbike accidents, workplace accidents and explosive trauma from mines has given them much practice.
However, as Vietnam continues to prosper and move away from the trauma of its past, they are working on better managing more elective cases and complex congenital and developmental problems.
Brian spent his time teaching the local surgeons about the management of paediatric problems including neuromuscular, developmental, and congenital problems. He scrubbed in to assist and teach with some complex procedures and the Australian team fostered relationships to help give their Vietnamese colleagues and the kids they treat the best outcomes possible in the future.
This was Brian’s third trip to Vietnam, and he hopes to return again soon.