Specialization in General Surgery

Early Specialization in Surgery: The New Frontier

Over the past 40 years, the scope and spectrum of surgical training has changed dramatically. Advances in technology, the spectrum and complexity of disease, the environment of less independence and, more recently, duty hour work restrictions [1,2] all have affected the “final product” of the general surgery graduate. This along with changing healthcare economics, the public demand of specializ...

Surgical competence in general surgery assistance: a brief report

Surgery in General

INTRODUCTION Pre-operative limb preparation (PLP) usually involves lifting the limb and holding it in a fixed ‘static’ posture for several minutes. This is hazardous to theatre staff. Furthermore, ‘painting’ the limb can be time consuming and difficult areas such as between toes and fingers may remain unsterile. We demonstrate the time efficiency and asepsis achieved using the ‘sterile bag’ pre...

Essential tension: specialization with broad and general training in psychology.

The practice fields of psychology develop through specialization in training and education. The recognized specialties play a major role in developing new opportunities for professional psychology and providing quality services for the public. The essential tension comes from the balance of innovation and tradition and, in professional psychology, from the balance of fragmentation and unificati...

General Surgery

46 SAJS VOL. 51 NO. 2 MAY 2013 The diagnosis or exclusion of cancer in the thyroid nodule remains a clinical dilemma for general surgeons and endocrinologists. Nodular disease of the thyroid is very common, while cancer is rare; a definite diagnosis of either is difficult to make. The general prevalence of thyroid nodules is very high. They are detectable in 5% of the normal population on clini...