Current training in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is inadequate given the demands of patients and practitioners. This training is neither widespread nor is it standardized, resulting in graduate surgeons with a wide-range of competence. There is little guidance in what a training program needs to be effective. We propose to write a book, freely available electronically on the Web site for the University of Kentucky Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery, on the state-of-the art of MIS training. We believe that having free access to this content, in the rapidly changing field of MIS would be welcome on a world-wide basis. Our goal is to help surgical residency directors and faculty, through the use of this book, design an up-to-date training program, with the ultimate goal of certifying the MIS skill of graduating residents. MIS is a surgical method that crosses surgical specialties and has been used for slightly more than a decade. Patients, who need surgical treatment have voted with their feet. They want the benefits of MIS over traditional surgery of shorter hospital stays, quicker recovery, and the better cosmesis associated with MIS. We have invited international experts in the field of MIS training to participate in writing chapters of the book. We will closely coordinate the writing through the use of e-mail along with teleconferences to discuss the overall organization and content of the book. We anticipate that writing decisions (e.g., reducing overlapping content among chapters) will be made by the writing group. The Web development team will begin work early so as to have parts of the book available on our Web-site shortly after submission of the final draft. Their role in creating the content and reference links, along with their ability to portray content with movement, sound, and, 3-D will help the book to be a model for Web-based books. That we are able to provide timely updates at no cost to the user makes using the Web a viable medium for content delivery. Thus, we are enthusiastic about being able to provide an electronic book, that will be continuously updated to reflect the state-of-the-art of MIS training, to a group with no other reasonable options for getting the information.
