SHARE-ing the World: Mandatory Global Surgery Education for Plastic Surgery Residents at UMass

Background Non-communicable diseases and injuries are now the leading causes of disability-adjusted life years globally. Plastic and reconstructive surgery (PRS) can address up to 66% of surgical disease burden, yet only 41% of U.S. residency programs offer global surgery education. This gap, coupled with ethical tensions between local and visiting surgeons on topics like scope of practice and informed consent, underscores the need for culturally sensitive, stakeholder-informed training models. Methods Surgeons in Humanitarian Alliance for Reconstruction, Research and Education (SHARE), founded in 2019, aims to increase access to PRS care in low- and middle-income countries while prioritizing local surgeon leadership in Africa. This study assesses the impact of SHARE’s curriculum on the knowledge, attitudes, and confidence of UMass PRS residents regarding global surgery. Residents completed pre- and post-exposure surveys. Results Residents reported unanimous agreement with understanding ethical problems (mean=5.0 on a 5-point Likert scale), but limited prior experience and moderate confidence in delivering culturally competent care. There was strong interest in improving these skills. Conclusion Preliminary findings suggest UMass residents are eager to engage in global surgery education and build cultural competence. SHARE’s curriculum may serve as an effective model to fill existing gaps in global health training. It could be scalable to other programs aiming to prepare ethically grounded, globally competent surgeons.