LEADING SURGICAL

EDUCATION

About BJS Academy


It is essential for surgeons to engage in life-long learning to provide patients with the best available treatments.

Divided into five sections, BJS Academy is an online education resource that supports the professional development of current and future surgeons worldwide by championing research and collaboration.

Continuing surgical education


Committing to a career in surgery means keeping abreast of medical and surgical progress throughout 20–30 years.

Continuing surgical education summarises advances in various subspecialties, as well as providing lectures and vodcasts on topics of interest. If you wish to pursue formal credentialling or educational training courses, you can find out more about the BJS Institute’s collaboration with the University of Edinburgh.


               <bold>OSRC: developing novel tools for medical research</bold>

OSRC: developing novel tools for medical research

Alaa El-Hussuna (M.B.Ch.B, M.Sc.,Ph.D.)

The Open Source Research Collaboration (OSRC) is an international organization dedicated to advancing healthcare innovation through the integration of information technologies. Comprising a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, scientists, IT engineers, computer scientists, and students from these fields, OSRC focuses on developing and disseminating novel tools for medical research.
OSRC's mission is to promote innovation in healthcare by implementing information technologies. The organization emphasizes the use of publicly available information, such as databases, the internet, and social media, to conduct open-source research. Recognizing the limitations of traditional research methods in addressing current healthcare challenges, OSRC aims to explore and develop new tools for medical research through the application of information technologies.

17 June 2025
2025 Association of Surgeons in Training BJS Prize: Open repair vs endovascular repair in connective tissue disease patients with thoracoabdominal aortic pathologies - a systematic review &amp; meta-analysis

2025 Association of Surgeons in Training BJS Prize: Open repair vs endovascular repair in connective tissue disease patients with thoracoabdominal aortic pathologies - a systematic review & meta-analysis

We are proud to present the BJS Prize session from 49th ASiT Annual Surgical Conference held at the ICC Belfast from 7-9 March 2025. The BJS Prize winner was Hashem Malkawi: "Open repair vs endovascular repair in connective tissue disease patients with thoracoabdominal aortic pathologies - a systematic review & meta-analysis".

2 June 2025

Young BJS


Dedicated to and managed by surgeons in training, Young BJS offers everything a trainee could need to supplement and expand upon their core learning.

Focusing on the importance of surgical research, it gives trainees the opportunity to read and critique research, design surgical projects and optimise their chances of being published in peer-reviewed journals.

Evaluation and treatment of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm

Evaluation and treatment of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm

Leinweber ME, Rahmaditya FS, Hinchliffe RJ
Br J Surg 2025; 112: znaf051.

23 May 2025
High stakes on a plane

High stakes on a plane

Oliver Kooseenlin

I was sleeping on a flight and I am woken by a flight attendant asking a man in the opposite row “are you sure you’re OK?”
He was hyperventilating and complaining of chest pain. When the flight attendants started to bring out medical equipment from a locker, a curiosity spark lit up. I never experienced a medical emergency on a flight since graduating. I assisted a passenger on a train before, but never in the air.
I introduced myself, informed them I was training to become a surgeon and tried to get a brief history. I had no idea where to start. I asked, with little confidence, if there was any emergency kit? The crew proceeded to show me vials of adrenaline, an airway kit, an oxygen cylinder and plasters. The patient had low sats, so I went through my A to E in my head – thinking of my recent CCrISP -, putting on oxygen as we moved onto C and D, asking the cabin crew to be my “scribe” for the findings. A whirl of surgical differentials started spinning in my head when examining the abdomen. Could this be a pneumothorax, would he need a chest drain? Is this a perforation needing urgent intervention. Is this an episode of pancreatitis triggered by one too many in the bar pre-flight?

2 May 2025

Cutting edge blog


Globally recognised journals, BJS and BJS Open, deliver a wealth of quality materials surrounding surgical science and learning.

The Cutting edge blog offers commentary and opinion pieces about published papers, journal clubs and debates for regular readers of the Foundation’s journals, as well as summary digests of other recent surgical publications.

Comment on: Concordance of ChatGPT artificial intelligence decision-making in colorectal cancer multidisciplinary meetings: retrospective study

Comment on: Concordance of ChatGPT artificial intelligence decision-making in colorectal cancer multidisciplinary meetings: retrospective study

Hinpetch Daungsupawong, Viroj Wiwanitkit

Corresponding author: Hinpetch Daungsupawong (email: hinpetchdaung@gmail.com)
Private Academic Consultant
Phonhong

25 June 2025
Author response: Concordance of ChatGPT artificial intelligence decision-making in colorectal cancer multidisciplinary meetings: retrospective study

Author response: Concordance of ChatGPT artificial intelligence decision-making in colorectal cancer multidisciplinary meetings: retrospective study

Dimitrios Chatziisaak, Stephan Bischofberger

Correspondence to: Stephan Bischofberger (e-mail: stephan.bischofberger@kssg.ch)
Department of Surgery
Kantonsspital St. Gallen

25 June 2025

Scientific surgery


Designed to help the busy surgeon keep up to date, Scientific surgery provides succinct summaries of new and interesting information collated from leading surgical journals and digital media.

Surgical news


Exploring topics relevant to both surgeons and people without medical training, Surgical news is accessible to everyone.

Many patients seek reliable information on the best treatments for surgical diseases, whilst others have a general interest in reading quality articles about surgeons and surgical practice.

Clinical examination is dead

Clinical examination is dead

Dr Paul McCoubrie

In this new series, Dr Paul McCoubrie offers a 'view from the dark side' — looking at the world of surgery through the lens of a radiologist.
_______________________
I was at a national radiology conference four years ago when a consultant surgeon stood up and stated, “Clinical examination is dead”. There was a stunned silence for a few moments then hushed murmurs of discontent. She clearly believed it and stated it without embarrassment.

23 June 2025
A surgical life by James Shapiro

A surgical life by James Shapiro

A.M. James Shapiro, MD PhD

I completed Medical School at the University of Newcastle-on-Tyne. My first taste of research was in islet transplantation. I knew I wanted to be a surgeon but it was super-competitive at the time. I was convinced I was not smart enough to get in, so several people advised me to think about a year of research to help me stand out. I went to see a surgeon called John Farndon who was a Consultant Surgeon and Senior Lecturer at the time. He had a long list of typed out projects. One caught my eye – islet transplants in rats, and the use of cryopreservation to alter immunogenicity. I had never seen a rat before, knew nothing about diabetes or cryopreservation, but signed up for a year’s research (B.Med.Sci.) project. I asked John if this was a good topic to pick. He told me he wouldn’t sell me a lemon! It set me on my path forward to today. I completed the one-year research project with John Farndon and Tom Lennard – both of whom later became Professors and Heads of Department in Bristol and Newcastle respectively. My initial islet experiments were all failures despite my working day and night (including sleeping in the animal house to monitor 24-hour glucoses from the rat tails).
I completed House Jobs at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle and in Cambridgeshire, and in moving I had a small upright piano for sale. One evening I got a phone message from John Farndon saying “No, I don’t want to buy a bloody piano, but if you want a job in Bristol call me back!” I was an Anatomy Demonstrator in Bristol for a year, then applied to the junior (Senior House Officer, SHO) rotation in General Surgery – but did not get in (perhaps because John couldn’t make it to the interview). I was lucky enough to spend six months as an SHO in Urology which was great fun and provided early solid training in major retroperitoneal surgery. Finally, I was appointed to the SHO rotation in Bristol in General Surgery and completed the two-year training and an additional six months as a Registrar. I had a career advice meeting with John at one point – he told me to go to Canada to train in liver transplant surgery, and that I shouldn’t come back (more than a subliminal message that it was time to get rid of me)! Professor Derek Alderson had direct contacts with the Professor Norman Kneteman in Edmonton, Canada and one phone call set me on my way to Fellowship. I completed a two-year fellowship in liver transplant surgery in Edmonton, completed a Ph.D. in experimental surgery with Norman in models of islet transplantation (this time the experiments worked). The paediatric liver transplant surgeon in Edmonton left unexpectedly and they begged me to stay – where I have remained ever since. I completed a further two years of Chief Residency in General Surgery, during which time I was able to complete three additional 6-month Fellowships – in hepatobiliary oncologic surgery in Vancouver with Buz Scudamore, whole pancreas transplant surgery with Stephen Bartlett at the University of Maryland, and in living donor liver transplant surgery with Professor Koichi Tanaka in Kyoto. I joined the Faculty at the University of Alberta in 1998 and moved through the ranks to Full Professor and Canada Research Chair. I am now the Director of the liver transplant program where we perform around 110 liver transplantations per year, the living donor liver transplant program, and the islet transplant program, as well as over 300 major hepatobiliary operations per year.
Professor James Shapiro and his wife, Vanessa.

18 June 2025

BJS Academy team


The talented team behind the Academy bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to their roles.

The Academy website is managed by IT partners, River Valley Technologies, a Content Management team coordinated by ACS Global and a BJS Academy Board managed by Robert Hinchliffe.

Editor in Chief

Editor in Chief


Robert Hinchliffe manages and coordinates the activities of BJS Academy.

Editor in Chief

BJS Academy Board


Supporting the Editor in Chief, this team creates the Academy’s educational resources.

Editor in Chief

Management team


This team supports the Editor in Chief to deliver the strategy and manage the delivery of the Academy.