Papua New Guinea

The College's support includes the provision of a range of clinical services to Papua New Guinea (PNG) and developing local surgical and medical capacity through its commitment to practical training and skills transfer.

The goal is to improve patient health through increased tertiary health services in Papua New Guinea.

Specialist medical teams visit major and provincial centres, delivering services in the following specialties:

• Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery
• Urology
• Neurosurgery
• Ophthalmology
• Cardiac Surgery
• Paediatric Surgery
• Orthopaedic Surgery
• Obstetrics and Gynaecology
• Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

PNG's self-sufficiency in the delivery of tertiary health services is constantly improving, facilitated by the College's ongoing emphasis on the training of local surgical and medical personnel. Each visiting surgical team is accompanied by PNG medical personnel and at least one major training workshop is conducted annually.

The College has also developed a strong relationship with the University of PNG (UPNG), School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), which facilitates the training and mentoring of local PNG surgical trainees. Some specialty visits are scheduled during the formal examination week to provide the medical school with external examiners for its candidates.

To date the following has been achieved:

• More than 22,000 patients treated with over 7,300 operations across 9 surgical and medical specialties.
• Local surgical, anaesthetic and medical staff skilled up by supporting more than 300 PNG counterparts to travel with and participate in the clinical specialist program.
• Improved capacity of PNG specialists, evidenced by a number of newly-qualified sub-specialists who can now perform complex surgery; general surgeons are able to independently perform a wider range of cases through the provision of training and other capacity building activities.
• Established a local neurosurgical service through mentoring and supporting the formal training of the Pacific region's first qualified neurosurgeon.
• Established a local paediatric surgical service through the practical training and professional mentoring of PNG's first 2 fully qualified paediatric surgeons; Paediatric Surgery has improved to such a high level that local specialists are capable of leading outreach visits without the support of visiting personnel.
• Improved the knowledge of local surgical personnel in the areas of patient identification and selection, by supporting pre-screening activities prior to the arrival of specialist teams.
• Improved capacity of responding to emergencies and trauma through the provision of workshops such as Definitive Surgical Trauma Care (DSTC) (PDF), Early Management of Severe Trauma (EMST), Care of the Critically Ill Surgical Patient (CCrISP) and emergency medicine programs such as the Primary Trauma Care (PTC) Course. PNG instructors now have the capacity to deliver a number of these courses without the support of visiting personnel.
• Continued support for the attendance of Australian and New Zealand surgeons to attend the annual PNG Medical Symposium, as an important opportunity for PNG surgeons to develop and strengthen relationships with colleagues across Asia and the Pacific.
• Continued support for PNG surgeons and trainees to attend various workshops and capacity building activities including the College's Annual Scientific Conference (ASC), the Pacific Island Surgeons Association (PISA) Conference, Sign Nail Technology Workshop, Cadaver Dissection Course and Paediatric Life Support Course.
• Fostered the sustainability specialist services in PNG through the support for PNG surgeons and trainees to participate in hospital attachments in Australia and abroad.
• Improved standard of tertiary health care evidenced by the operations that have been performed by visiting and local specialists.

Scholarships and awards

In addition to training delivered through the project, the College international scholarships program supports additional training opportunities for PNG surgeons and trainees, both in Australia and abroad. This has contributed to the increased capacity of the current PNG tertiary health service and, most importantly, to the long-term sustainability of tertiary health service provision in PNG.

The College's Rowan Nicks Scholarship and Surgeons International Award programs have helped approximately fifteen PNG surgeons and anaesthetists access further training and education opportunities in Australia and New Zealand, and India.

2010

• Dr Noah Tapaua was awarded a 2010 Rowan Nicks Pacific Island Scholarship, and will undertake a 12-month attachment at the Frontier Lifeline & Dr. K. M. Cherian Heart Foundation in Chennai, India, commencing in September 2011. The scholarship is designed to support Dr Tapaua's plans to establish a cardiothoracic unit in PNG and build on his 2-year training at Geelong Hospital in 2007 and 2008, supported by the Surgeons International Award.
• Surgeons Dr Ikau Kevau, Dr Victor Golpak and Dr Arnold Waine were awarded the College's International Travel Grant to attend the 2010 Annual Scientific Congress (ASC) in Perth.

2009

• Dr Peter Kaminiel was awarded a 2009 Rowan Nicks Pacific Island Scholarship, which he commenced in January 2010. Dr Kaminiel initially undertook a 6-month attachment as a Supervised Registrar in the Trauma Unit at the Royal Perth Hospital under the supervision of Cameron Thrum. This was followed by additional 6 months at the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital under the supervision of Professor David Wood.
• Dr Sammy Thomas was also a 2009 Rowan Nicks Pacific Island Scholarship recipient. Dr Thomas commenced a 12-month training attachment at Townsville Hospital under the supervision of Mr Eric Guazzo specialising in Neurosurgery in 2011.
• Dr Jambi Garap undertook an attachment at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital through the support of the Surgeons International Award in 2009. Dr Garap worked under the supervision of Dr Robert Buttery for a 3-month tenure, supporting her development of eye care services in PNG through PNG Eye Care, a non-governmental organisation she founded in 2008.

2008

• Dr Sam Endican was supported by the Surgeons International Award to attend the Cadaver Dissection Course at the University of Queensland. As a recipient of this award, Dr Endican was also able to participate in a 5-week training program at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane, supervised by Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) surgeon Dr Chris Perry.

2007

• Dr Noah Tapaua received the Surgeons International Award to support Dr Tapaua's travel and relocation to Australia in February 2007 to begin a 2-year training program in Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Geelong Hospital, under the supervision of Mr Morteza Mohajeri. Upon completion of his attachment in December 2008, he returned to PNG to be the first surgeon-educator of Cardiothoracic Surgery in PNG.
• Dr Benjamin Yapo completed his Paediatric Surgery training in Australia at the Children's Hospital Westmead in New South Wales, initially supported by the Surgeons International Award and subsequently by Westmead Hospital. Dr Yapo retuned to Mt Hagen General Hospital in 2008 and on completion of his exams in 2009 became the third fully qualified paediatric surgeon in PNG.
• Dr Lister Lunn and Dr Arvin Karu were both awarded Rowan Nicks Scholarships in 2007 to undertake 12-month training attachments at the Frontier Lifeline & Dr. K.M. Cherian Heart Foundation in Chennai, India. This dual scholarship was awarded to provide specialist training in cardiac surgery for Dr Lunn and cardiac anaesthesia for Dr Karu.

2005

• Dr Timmy Tingnee was awarded his first Rowan Nicks Scholarship to undertake a 6-month attachment at the Tweed Heads Hospital. In 2007 Dr Tingnee was awarded a second Rowan Nicks Scholarship, which he used to gain extensive Urology experience at the Box Hill Hospital, Melbourne, under the supervision of Dr Allan Crosthwaite. On completion of his exams in 2009, Dr Timmy Tingnee became the second fully qualified urologist in PNG. Dr Tingee is currently setting up Urology services in Mt Hagen.
• Dr Matupi Apaio was supported by the Surgeons International Award in 2005 to attend the Westmead Hospital Oral & Maxillofacial (OMF) Surgery revision course in Sydney. While in Australia he also undertook 1-week clinical attachments; the first with Dr Paul Duke in Adelaide and the second with Mr Andrew Heggie in Melbourne.
• PNG paediatric surgeon Dr Okti Poki received a RACS International Travel Grant to attend the ASC in Perth.
• PNG trainee Dr Richard Benny received a Rowan Nicks Scholarship to support Urological surgical training at the Royal Brisbane Hospital.
• PNG surgeons Dr Mclee Mathew and Dr Ikau Kevau were awarded RACS International Travel Grants to attend the ASC in Melbourne.

2004

• Dr William Kaptigau a General Surgeon working in Port Moresby, received the Surgeons International Award, supporting him to participate in the 2004 ASC in Melbourne and to undertake advanced neurosurgical training under the supervision of Professor Jeffrey Rosenfeld at The Alfred Hospital. By the end of 2004, Dr Kaptigau successfully completed his Masters of Surgery at the University of Papua New Guinea, becoming the first qualified neurosurgeon in PNG, in addition to the first indigenous neurosurgeon in the South Pacific. Prior to this, Dr Kaptigau received a Rowan Nicks Scholarship in 2002, which enabled him to participate in a training attachment at Townsville Tertiary Hospital under the supervision of Professor Eric Guazzo.

Contact

Chairman - International Committee
Professor David Watters FRACS

Royal Australasian College of Surgeons
College of Surgeons' Gardens
250-290 Spring Street
East Melbourne VIC 3002 Australia
Fax: +61 3 9249 1276

Program Assistant - Ms Kate Moss
Telephone: +61 3 9276 7413
Email: kate.moss@surgeons.org

External Affairs Director
Ms Daliah Moss
Telephone: +61 3 9249 1276
Email: daliah.moss@surgeons.org