The Residents Education Taskforce was formed with the intention of building a standardized curriculum for the Basic and Advanced Principles courses that could be delivered globally. Until this reworking, courses were offered all over the world with varying content, and it was not always certain which learning objectives would be covered in a given course and which would be left out.

Covering the competencies of residents

The taskforce started the redesign process by acknowledging that the Basic and Advanced Principles courses were complementary in nature, with each addressing residents of different experience levels. Twelve competencies form the basis of the course framework (a competency expresses the ability to perform a task such as performing a surgical procedure or assessing a patient). The twelve competencies of the residents' education curriculum were defined based on the specific learning needs of all residents managing trauma patients. Competencies range from explaining the concepts of stability and their influence on bone healing to the assessment and treatment of specific patient problems that residents must deal with. For every competency, measurable learning objectives have been defined.

The new framework—consisting of core (mandatory) and optional content—recognizes the need for flexibility on a regional level, yet still satisfies AOTrauma’s goal of high-quality, globally consistent courses.

Conscious of the needs of faculty and chairpersons when planning and delivering a course, the implementation of the new curriculum has been facilitated with a range of tools and support services.

Comprehensive planning resources

A list of course activities has been compiled for each course, indicating core or optional for each item. This planning resource is very straightforward and provides a quick and easy overview of the many options available for chairpersons to meet the needs of their participants.

Other essential resources are the course templates that take the guesswork out of planning, especially for first-time chairpersons and/or those with limited time for planning. Several templates have been prepared to address specific logistical scenarios such as limited practical room resources or working in parallel with the Operating Room Personnel (ORP) course.

A large portion of time in both courses is dedicated to interactive activities such as case discussions in small groups, simulations, and workshops—the ready-to-use course templates reflect this with a mix of core and highly recommended optional content in a meaningful sequence, complete with timing for each activity.

These course templates as well as all of the other documents and resources mentioned above can be found in the Faculty Support Packages for the Basic and Advanced Principles courses under the AOTrauma Faculty Center (access restricted to registered faculty members only). In addition these support packages also feature:

• cases for small group discussions,
• PowerPoint templates for practical exercise directors with tailored video clips,
• prepared PowerPoint lectures,

…all contributed by international faculty members.

Addition of AO Skills Lab

One of the new interactive core elements of Basic and Advanced Principles courses is the AO Skills Lab (formerly the Playground), a workshop that promotes reflection while offering hands-on experience with the key principles of bone fracture treatment. The integration of the AO Skills Lab as mandatory content speaks of AOTrauma's responsiveness to match appropriate teaching methods to a target audience.

In order to find out how the integration of this highly rated activity is progressing, AO Skills Lab Directors were surveyed. One respondent commented: “it was an incredible experience for the participants. Finally they can understand basic skills about their specialty.” And another stated that, “the checklist [for Skills Lab Directors], especially the videos and all the material available [were] very helpful for preparing all faculty.” These checklists and videos can be found in another separate Faculty Support Package that was designed especially for the AO Skills Lab (to be found also under the AOTrauma Faculty Center).

Planning course for chairpersons

In order to manage the large amount of support material and correctly apply them to the planning of Basic and Advanced Principles courses, the Chairperson Training Program (CTP) was developed for faculty members assigned to chair a Basic and Advanced Principles courses. Over 5 weeks of online activities and a 1.5-day live event, the chairpersons are encouraged to plan their courses according to the new framework. Experienced faculty members are present to answer their questions and provide detailed information on the usage of the templates.

When chairperson George Thomas from India and participant of the recent CTP in Hong Kong (August 16–17) was asked about his comments on the program, he said that he very much enjoyed sharing his experience with the new framework with fellow chairpersons from his region. The program itself was “informative, interactive, friendly and comprehensive."

Ensuring educational quality standards

Rooted in evidence-based adult learning theory

Throughout the entire redesign of the Basic and Advanced Principles courses, the Residents Education Taskforce placed strong emphasis on integrating the latest adult educational theory. A backward planning approach was used to steer the redesign process. In medical education, this is considered a best-practice principle. The taskforce started by identifying the desired outcomes and learning objectives before selecting instructional methods and forms of assessment.

These courses are part of the AOTrauma Residents Education Program, which among others includes face-to-face events, webinars, eLearning modules and the newly developed interactive learning hub "AOSTaRT". The overall standardization of the Basic and Advanced Principles courses reflects the quality management and the adherence to AO's principles of education that AOTrauma aims for in all its educational activities.