BSMS student shows his surgical skills
January 11, 2012 at 12:39 PM
Kishan Moosai, a fourth year medical student from Brighton and Sussex Medical School has won the Kent, Surrey and Sussex and Wessex heat of a nationwide surgical skills competition run by The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd), and will now go to the Grand Final in Edinburgh where he will compete to win a trip to Johnson & Johnson’s skills centre in Hamburg, Germany.
The Lister Surgical Skills Competition has been organised by RCSEd in association with Johnson & Johnson Medical Companies to commemorate the life and contribution of Lord Joseph Lister, 100 years after his death. A former Fellow of RCSEd, Lister was world-renowned for his groundbreaking work in the prevention of wound infection, which contributed greatly to the advancement of surgical standards and led to Lister becoming known as ‘the father of modern surgery’.
The skills competition has brought medical students from across the UK together to demonstrate their surgical skills in a series of heats over the last two months, as they attempted to reach the Grand Final of the competition, which takes place in Edinburgh on 11 February 2012 as part of the Lister Centenary Celebrations.
As the principal sponsor of the Lister Centenary Celebrations, Johnson & Johnson is offering the prize of a trip to its European Surgical Training Institute in Hamburg for the overall winner, with The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) awarding the runner-up with free student membership until they qualify as a doctor.
At the Kent, Surrey and Sussex and Wessex heat, 19 students from the University of Southampton and Brighton and Sussex Medical School, with an interest in pursuing a career in surgery competed in four surgical skills tests: knot tying, suturing, cyst removal and laparoscopy. On winning the heat, Kishan received a year’s student affiliation to RCSEd.
The KSS and Wessex heat was run by Mr Iain Paterson, who is RCSEd’s Regional Surgical Adviser for the area and a Consultant General Surgeon at Frimley Park Hospital. Explaining more, he said:
“The Lister Surgical Skills Competition is designed to be instructive but also fun, competitive and inspiring. The RCSEd is therefore to be commended for organising such a large event, which saw over 300 medical students nationwide participating. It is hoped that by taking part in such a unique competition the students will be encouraged to pursue a surgical career.
“The level of skill demonstrated by all the students taking part in the heat was extremely high and therefore very encouraging for the future. The two winners were exceptional. Lister would surely have been proud to have his name associated with such a worthwhile exercise and I wish both finalists the very best of luck for the national final in Edinburgh.”
Commenting on his victory, Kishan said:
“Initially on finding out I won the regional heat, I felt a combination of surprise and elation. I can honestly say that I thoroughly enjoyed the regional heat as it gave me an opportunity to practise surgical skills, which at our level of training is often a rare occurrence. I am proud of the fact that I was able to progress in a challenging environment and that I was able to demonstrate and practise my surgical skills. Naturally, I did find some of the tasks challenging, however, I have always enjoyed competition and the challenging nature of this heat tested my skills under pressure. My success in this heat has also re-confirmed my love for the practical aspects of surgery and furthered my desire to pursue surgery as a career.
“I view my progression in the competition as one of my biggest achievements in my medical career to date. Since the Lister Surgical Skills competition is a national competition, I hope that this will add weight to my CV and aid in my application to specialise in such a competitive field – surgery."
“The chance of winning the opportunity to visit the Johnson & Johnson’s European Surgical Training centre in Hamburg is a very exciting prospect. As a medical student there are very few opportunities to get experience and training in a speciality such as surgery, especially from a centre as prestigious as the one in Hamburg. Therefore it would truly be an honour to get such a rare opportunity.”