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SICOT e-Newsletter

Issue No. 41 - February 2012

Training & Education

Hiranandani Orthopaedic Medical Education (HOME) Research Fellowship

Sarang Kasture
SICOT member - Pune, India

I was awarded the Hiranandani Orthopaedic Medical Education (HOME) Research Fellowship at the Dr L.H. Hiranandani Hospital in Mumbai, India, from 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011. This fellowship was a perfect opportunity for a young surgeon like me to get involved in active orthopaedic research. This programme is headed by Dr Vijay Shetty and Dr Sanjeev Jain, who contribute to making this Hospital a great place to work. Dr Vijay Shetty is a renowned arthroplasty surgeon and a dedicated academician with great inclination for research, and Dr Sanjeev Jain is also a famous arthroplasty surgeon with his immense experience and vast reading. I was amazed to see both of them so full of energy and enthusiasm.

The Dr L.H. Hiranandani Hospital is a 250-bed multispecialty hospital. The Hiranandani Orthopaedic Medical Education (HOME) is a research wing of the Department of Orthopaedics headed also by Dr Vijay Shetty and Dr Sanjeev Jain. HOME has its own dedicated office with all basic research tools. On the first day itself I was given two research projects. One was carrying forward an ongoing project on temperature trends after total knee replacement and its relation to a drop in haemoglobin. The other was a systematic review on groin pain in athletes. I was briefed about the protocol for the projects with the deadlines set. The best part of this fellowship is that, apart from active research work, it also involves clinical work including operating as a first assistant.

A typical day in this fellowship started early in the morning in the operation theatre with a unilateral or bilateral total knee arthroplasty and a case or two of arthroscopy. The afternoon session was dedicated to discussing  ongoing projects. It also included a discussion of new published articles on topics of interest. We used to have a meeting with the statistician once a fortnight. Reviewing the follow-up patients in the outpatient department as per prior appointment and the research topic summed up the day. By the end of the fellowship tenure, I had completed projects on temperature trends in knee arthroplasty, meta-analysis on complications of arthroplasty, subvastus approach in knee arthroplasty and performance of high flexion cruciate retaining prosthesis. I had three papers selected as e-posters at the SICOT Triennial World Congress in Prague and two at the combined Australia/New Zealand meeting in Roturua, New Zealand, with one of them as a podium presentation. I was associated with an international multicentre trial on the efficacy of a drug in fracture healing, which gave me a valuable insight into the process of conducting a drug trial. I also actively assisted in reviewing articles, which helped me understand the reviewing process of many reputed journals. HOME had organised a CME on "Challenges and Debates in Arthroplasty" with renowned national and international faculty participating in live surgical demonstrations and discussions.

I had the opportunity to attend the JBJS (British) Indian reviewers' meeting twice and to meet editors of this reputed journal. It helped me understand the objectives and functioning of the journal. I am pleased to say that this fellowship has earned me reviewership of this journal.

Finally, I must also mention that the working environment in the hospital is very friendly. Apart from being a highly competent surgeon, Dr Vijay Shetty is also extremely considerate and helpful. He is a very good teacher and excellent guide. I sincerely thank him and Dr Sanjeev Jain for being such great hosts.

The experience and knowledge I have gained from this fellowship has changed my outlook on orthopaedic practice and research in particular. I strongly recommend this fellowship to any young surgeon who wishes to learn and make an active contribution to orthopaedic research.


Vijay Shetty, my colleague Amber Mittal, and I