Residents from the University of Colorado Department of Surgery and University of Colorado School of Medicine students recently spent two weeks performing craniofacial and other procedures at multiple hospitals in Vietnam, getting an up-close and personal look at this emerging field.
The trip was arranged by Phuong Nguyen, MD, professor of plastic and reconstructive surgery, who was named the department’s first associate chief of global surgery in January.
→ Phuong Nguyen, MD, appointed associate chief of global surgery at CU Surgery
As part of his new role, Nguyen quickly brought a group of students and residents to Vietnam through Nuoy Reconstructive International, an NGO he co-founded that travels regularly to Vietnam. It provides complex reconstructive care, including craniofacial, microsurgery and hand surgery, in Vietnam, where it hosts educational conferences and research collaborations.
big numbers
The March trip to Vietnam included residents, students and other trainees from the CU School of Medicine and other institutions. The 35-member team, working at five different hospitals, including two of the largest children’s hospitals in the country, examined more than 250 patients, 95 of whom required surgery. The US team also hosted a three-day microsurgery conference and craniofacial surgery symposium.
The CU surgical team and others are in front of the Vietnam National Children’s Hospital.
“We do surgery, we do education, including three different teaching methods, one of my colleagues at the University of Wisconsin brought a 3D-printed microscope and taught 130 surgeons and residents how to perform microsurgery,” Nguyen said. . “I had a half-day symposium with 50 doctors at the Children’s Hospital, and we transported 122 kilograms of instruments and medical equipment. We also held meetings and established relationships with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Vietnam Alliance of Friendship Organizations, and explored New cities including Ho Chi Minh City and Hai Phong.
Sustainable cooperation
For Leela Mundra, MD, chief resident of CU Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, a trip to Vietnam provided valuable experience as she hopes to integrate international service into her medical career.
“I hope to incorporate global surgery into my eventual practice,” she said. “This was a valuable opportunity for me to be part of a global surgical program during my residency. It was incredible to be able to instantly transform a patient with microtia in one day by creating an ear from his ribs. children’s lives, or the disadvantages of complex microsurgical reconstruction for a gentleman with a large scalp.
Nuoy Reconstructive International Group located at Lotte Center in Hanoi.
Mundra said she appreciated the sustainable collaborative approach adopted by Nguyen and Noi, establishing strong relationships with local hospitals and surgeons in both countries and learning from each other.
“It brings a new perspective to our work as plastic surgeons,” she said. “By understanding how surgeons in resource-limited countries perform these procedures, it teaches us innovative techniques and how to incorporate some of them into our practice.”
global community
Ryan Constantine, MD, another chief resident in plastic and reconstructive surgery, said performing surgeries in Vietnam made him feel like he was part of a larger community of surgeons around the world.
“I learned that no matter where you go, the surgery is the same — we’re all doing the same thing,” he said. “The first surgery I did there, there was no American surgeon. It was me and four Vietnamese faculty members. I didn’t speak Vietnamese and they didn’t speak English, but we got through it completely fine. From They respected me from that point on. I also realized that they had a lot to teach us about how to use resources more efficiently.
go home
Also invited to the Vietnam trip was Khoa Nguyen (no relation to Phuong), a third-year medical student at the University of Colorado who was born in Vietnam.
“We come from very similar backgrounds,” Khoa said of Phuong. “He was a first-generation immigrant to become a plastic surgeon, and I was a first-generation Vietnamese immigrant who wanted to be a plastic surgeon. When we met, I mentioned that I was fluent in the language and he invited me to work with his organization and Surgeons from CU and other institutions travel together.
Noy Reconstruction International Group’s Patient Screening Day at Ruby Hospital.
Khoa stayed in Vietnam for a week longer than the CU residents, helping translate and help set up electronic medical records Noe rebuilt the system of International and its affiliated hospitals.
“Because I am fluent in the language, I assist all international surgeons by assisting with translation in the clinic, operating room and outside the hospital,” he said. “I think one of the reasons Dr. Nguyen was willing to offer me this opportunity is that I mentioned to him that I really wanted to do this type of global surgical work as part of my future practice and be able to give back to my home country of Vietnam. . This has always been my goal.
