Taking Care Of The Fundamentals

Aaron Ranasinghe is a Consultant Cardiac Surgeon and Transplant Surgeon at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust in the UK. He has been a member of EACTS since he was a resident, and for the past year has been the EACTS Academy Director. As part of this, he takes a lead role on the Fundamentals courses, which are the building blocks for residents looking ahead to the European Board of Cardiothoracic Surgery exams.

How has the Academy coped during the pandemic?

“I ran courses prior to my role with EACTS but of course those were all pre-pandemic, so this has been very different. I took on the role right in the middle of the pandemic when there was absolutely no chance of running any face-to-face courses, so we went purely online, which was a challenge. Online courses can be very difficult in terms of setting the right levels of interactivity and getting the faculty and the delegates to engage with each other when they are used to working face to face. “We’ve also had to revamp the courses. Previously some of them would run for almost a week and they’d have wet labs attached to them. With an online format that is much more difficult to do. People’s ability to concentrate on screen for long periods is much diminished. The interesting thing is that we found different arms of the specialty have approached it in different ways. Some have stuck with a more traditional format, while others have gone for hour-long webinar-type approaches. “I think that there is no one size fits all.”

Overall, has the online approach worked?

“Yes, the feedback from the courses has exceeded expectations considering the constraints we’ve been under. The vast majority of comments from delegates have been very positive but at the same time a lot of them are asking when we’re going to be back up and running face-to-face courses.”

What can you us about the plans for 2022?

“We are planning face-to-face courses. The Annual Meeting in Barcelona attracted more than 2000 participants, which was very successful, and I think people are back on board with the idea of meeting in-person. The Fundamentals course in March (Coronary Artery Surgery) is planned to be a face-to-face format in Windsor, subject to any new Covid restrictions.”

How important are the Academy courses to the overall business of EACTS?

“EACTS supports its membership in several ways and education is a paramount part of that. We have a commitment to our younger and less experienced members to bring them on, and to provide them with the necessary building blocks so that they can progress their careers as cardiothoracic surgeons. These courses are vital to the ethos of EACTS.”

Has the online format changed the content of the courses in any way?

“One of the good things about the pandemic and the online courses is that we have been able to tap into a wider faculty. Rather than people having to travel to contribute, they have been able to do it from the comfort of their office or even their home. We’ve had access to people who are world leaders and who would previously may have been too busy. But they also have a commitment to education, and the fact that they have given up their time for the EACTS Academy is fantastic. Now that we’ve got them on board, we hope that they will continue to engage in a face-to-face environment.”

Beyond the Fundamentals courses, what else does the Academy offer members?

“I think that all the EACTS courses are very good. A lot of thought and planning goes into them. There is a wealth of world-leading experience in cardiothoracic surgery across Europe that we have access to. “An exciting development is that we have rebranded the EACTS Academy and the educational content. One of our key messages is ’the right course for the right person at the right time’, and we’ve been much clearer in our branding about who should come to which course. “For example, a Fundamentals course is branded at level one. That means the faculty and the delegates know that the syllabus is aimed at residents. Then comes level two, which is for those residents who are taking up a consultant or attending position or are in the early years of their consultant or attending position. Then level three is for those people who’ve been consultants or attendings for some years and who maybe want to branch out or start a new technology within their unit. “This clear branding hopefully means people know exactly what level of course they should be aiming for.”

How do you see the format of Academy courses developing over the next few years?

“When we look at the feedback from the courses, some people want face-to-face, some want online, and some are asking for hybrid. We’re hoping to offer all those formats. And some courses will naturally work better in one format rather than another. “I don’t think online is suddenly dead. Online courses can be just as convenient for delegates as for the faculty. We need to remember that travel across the continent remains difficult and paying for airfares and hotel fees can be difficult for trainees, especially those who come from less affluent parts of Europe. We must also be mindful to keep the EACTS Academy open to every member. “I should also mention the tremendous support that I get from the administration team at EACTS, working behind the scenes and making sure things happen. Without that support, we would not be able to deliver any of the courses.”

I should also mention the tremendous support that I get from the administration team at EACTS, working behind the scenes and making sure things happen. Without that support, we would not be able to deliver any of the courses.