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Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on both healthcare delivery and surgical training. There have been significant efforts to manage the growing elective waiting list backlog whilst addressing the training deficit. We outline a successful pilot high volume low complexity (HVLC) program held at the Croydon Elective Centre between 2021-2022 which aimed to amalgamate training and elective recovery. Methods Two pilot HVLC training lists were carried out in June 2021 and March 2022. Three parallel theatre lists on each date were supervised by a single consultant floor trainer. All lists followed a standard pre-defined HVLC protocol. Trainees and trainers were invited to participate and encouraged to utilize these lists to sign off relevant work-based assessments. HVLC cases included hernia repairs and simple lesion excisions. Patient, theatre staff, and trainee experiences were collated via questionnaires. Results A total of one consultant supervisor, six trainers, and eight trainees participated in the pilot with a total of 34 elective procedures performed on 29 patients. The mean patient age was 52.4 years with 8 out of 29 patients being female. Of these patients 41.4% were American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) Classification one, 51.72% were ASA two and 6.9% were ASA three. No patients to date were readmitted to the hospital post-operatively or presented with post-operative complications. One hundred percent of trainees felt satisfied with the training and would recommend it to a colleague. Conclusion The training deficit that developed during the first COVID-19 pandemic wave has been compounded by the second and third waves, and trainees are concerned that further waves are anticipated. Returning to operating is vital and our approach has been shown to improve training, whilst maintaining patient safety and accelerating elective waiting list recovery.
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OBJECTIVE: To report a case of femoral vein thrombosis in a carpet fitter and to highlight this as an occupational hazard. METHOD: Case presentation and literature review. RESULTS: An otherwise fit 21-year-old carpet fitter with no past medical history presented with acute thrombosis of his left common femoral, superficial femoral and great saphenous veins. Attempted catheter directed thrombolysis was unsuccessful. Due to severe pain and the threat of venous gangrene he was treated by emergency surgical thrombectomy with excision of chronic venous scarring and vein-patch repair that led to resolution of his symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Deep vein thrombosis is typically associated with factors such as increasing age and prolonged periods of immobility; however, certain 'active' occupations can increase its risk. Crouched and cramped working conditions including repetitive active movement with flexed hips and knees can predispose to increased risk of venous thromboembolism.
