Utilizing the American Board of Surgery In-Training Exam in a Rwandan Surgical Residency program: Alignment of Exam Topics with the University of Rwanda General Surgery Curriculum

Background: University of Rwanda (UR) increased postgraduate surgery training and assessment strategies are needed. We compared American Board of Surgery In-Training Exam (ABSITE) topics with UR surgery curriculum to determine the applicability of ABSITE in Rwanda.
Methods: Topics are outlined in the Surgical Council on Resident Education (SCORE) curriculum whereas the UR utilizes a modular system. Diseases and conditions in SCORE were compared with UR surgery module content. Operation and procedures in SCORE were compared with operative procedures in UR surgery curriculum.
Results: Overall, 72% of diseases and conditions from SCORE were covered in UR curriculum. Of this, 76% of medical knowledge and 71% of patient care content was covered in UR curriculum. 41% of operations and procedures from SCORE were identified in UR curriculum. 55% of core operations and 16% of advanced operations from SCORE were included in UR general surgery curriculum. Content identified in UR curriculum and not SCORE included infectious and tropical diseases, orthopedics, urology and neurosurgery.
Conclusions: There is alignment between ABSITE topics and UR general surgery curriculum suggesting that the ABSITE can be used as an in-training examination for Rwandan residents. Understanding the limitations of the ABSITE exam can help utilization of this examination.