The RCS ESOS Course: What Have We Learned and What Have We to Offer Other Course Organisers?
Previous surgical training provided a long and wide exposure to general surgery but the combination of subspecialisation and reduced training time means that current trainees and consultants are no longer exposed to the same variety and number of surgical cases. Although this may not be a problem in the day-to-day running of a surgical firm, both trainee and consultant surgeons in the emergency setting can feel concerned and stressed by a condition encountered infrequently. Furthermore, with the rapid change in technology, operations are often rapidly superseded and leave surgeons at risk of criticism if they are not 'up to date' in a condition outside their specialty. It is therefore important that trainees and consultants alike keep abreast of advances in the management of a broad range of emergency conditions while continuing to develop their own subspecialty interest.