SICOT e-Newsletter

Issue No. 58 - July 2013

Editorial by Kandiah Raveendran, SICOT First Vice-President

Education in SICOT: The role of the Education Centre

The primary goal and objective of SICOT is education. Today SICOT is at the forefront of orthopaedic education and training. The SICOT website itemises all the different fellowships available, e-learning, publications and the education and training resources including the SICOT Education Centre.

This editorial is an update of my first editorial about the Education Centres published in the SICOT e-Newsletter (Issue No. 39 - December 2011).

The SICOT Education Centre has many objectives but the main ones are to educate orthopaedic trainees and to continue the education of orthopaedic surgeons. It is also involved in the training of allied health workers.

SICOT has established guidelines to assist universities and/or hospitals that wish to set up Education Centres in their city. Applications to set up such a centre should be made through the SICOT National Representative and are welcome all year at hq@sicot.org. The requirements for application can be found here.

The SICOT Education Centre provides a place for doctors to meet, learn, and conduct courses with access to journals, books and the Internet. SICOT will provide three fellowships annually – a three-month fellowship overseas in addition to two one-month SmS (SICOT meets SICOT) fellowships. SICOT will also send speakers if any courses or meetings are organised by the Education Centre.

On the SICOT website and in my first editorial, I have described the first three centres in Lahore, Pakistan, in Assiut, Egypt, and in Russia, Moscow. Another centre was approved in Tanzania but it is yet to become active.

Since then three more Education Centres have been approved and are at different stages of preparedness.

The first one was opened in Lagos under the direction of Dr Wahab Yinusa, the National Delegate of Nigeria. He is in the process of setting up a multi-purpose surgical skills laboratory.

The second one was approved in Mumbai, India, under the guidance of Prof Pradeep Bhosale and Dr Vijay Shetty. This is a private hospital and university partnership and is the first SICOT Education Centre in India. India, being a vast country, has potential for more centres.

The third centre was opened in Muscat, Oman, under the direction of Dr Mohamad Allami. They plan to hold an international conference in November 2013.

The establishment of multiple Education Centres worldwide not only enhances orthopaedic education, especially in the developing countries, but also promotes SICOT. The importance of the SICOT Education Centre will be even more evident in the future with the setting up of a special Education Centre sub-committee.

The First Vice President and the sub-committee will closely monitor the activity of the Education Centre and SICOT will not hesitate to close any non-functioning centre. The centre is obliged to give an annual report, take up available fellowships and organise courses and meetings.