Fellow reports on EFORT Autumn 2019 Travelling Fellowship in Hungary
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My EFORT Travelling Fellowship began on Sunday 6 October 2019. My many expectations for the fellowship were to improve my knowledge of orthopaedic and traumatology surgery and to meet colleagues who come from different countries to learn about everyone’s working realities. I was proud to represent my country through this experience.
Upon landing, I was welcomed by Attila Szatmari. The first day of our fellowship, we were hosted by the orthopaedic department of Uszoki Street Hospital, which was directed by Prof. László Hangody. He presented an interesting lecture on treatment of knee chondral defects and increased our knowledge on some innovative techniques, such as mosaicplasty. After this lecture, we visited the OR where we could see the techniques used in a primary total hip replacement case and in a case of acetabular cup revision. We then attended two other lectures about sports medicine, specifically patellofemoral chondral defects in elite athletes, and joint replacement. To close the day, we had the opportunity to explore Budapest.
The second and third days, we attended lectures on different topics at the Orthopedic Clinic of Semmelweis University. Among those I found most interesting were one about tumors and a lecture about shoulder arthroscopy surgical indications, which was given by Dr. Gábor Skaliczki.
On 9 October, after the OR visit, each fellow had the opportunity to make a presentation on a topic of his or her choice. I presented my clinical profile, my clinical experience and my research. I hope the audience appreciated listening, as I was attentive to the experiences of the many fellows, which personally and professionally enriched me. Finally, Prof. Szendröi introduced EFORT and presented the different educational possibilities available to young orthopedic surgeons and residents.
That day, I had the opportunity to see an interesting case of a unicompartmental knee implant revision, in which the broken femoral component caused metallosis and chronic knee pain.
We closed the day with a dinner with Prof. Szendröi, EFORT past president, and Prof. György Szke, chief of the orthopedic clinic of Semmelweis University. We discussed our professional expectations and the respective health systems of our countries. The professors showed real interest in each of us, and we all thanked them for that.
On Thursday, we were ready to visit Pecs, a nice town in the south of Hungary with an old and famous university that is attended by many students from foreign countries. After the visit to the 3D planning center, we appreciated the technological innovations that help to improve our techniques. Moreover, in the same place, I appreciated different lectures given by specialists in pediatric orthopaedics, sports medicine and prosthetic replacement. In the afternoon, we took a guided city tour of Pecs, a nice, old city that was the European capital of culture in 2010.
On 11 October, we concluded the scientific program of the fellowship by visiting the National Center of Spinal Disorders, where we were welcomed by Dr. Áron Lazáry, deputy chief of the department. We attended some interesting lectures, one of which was a video lecture on the removal of a sacral chordoma that raised much interest.
The last dinner was delicious, but at the same time a little sad, because it meant this experience was coming to an end. Unfortunately, I had to go back to Italy a day before the end of the fellowship, but I had the opportunity to say goodbye all of my fantastic traveling companions.
Overall, it was a great experience. I improved my knowledge of different specialties of orthopaedic surgery and had the opportunity to meet various colleagues who come from different countries and to exchange experiences from our schools. I hope to stay in touch with these contacts, because I believe I have found some new friends. Also, Budapest is a wonderful city, rich with history and friendly people. Again, it was a great honor for me to represent my country.
A special thanks to Prof. Miklos Szendröi and Dr. Attila Szatmari for their kind hospitality and, in general, to all the orthopaedists who welcomed us into their divisions, making us feel at home and teaching us so much. Finally, thanks to EFORT for having organized such a superb event, and to Società Italiana Ortopedia e Traumatologia for having chosen me and granted me the honor of representing Italy.
- For more information:
- EFORT Fellowships Programs
- EFORT Robotics Fellowship
- EFORT Travelling Fellowship
- Mark Paterson Travelling Fellowship
- EFORT-APOA Travelling Fellowship
- EFORT Visiting Fellowships
- EFORT Clinical Research Fellowship