Dr Désiré Olama Atangana
At the beginning of 2020, the AO Alliance sponsored the participation of Dr Vincent Désiré Olama Atangana in a four-week fellowship with AO Trauma, followed by a two-week fellowship with the AO Alliance. An orthopedic and trauma surgeon in Cameroon, his main goal was to expand his knowledge in hip surgery and strengthen his surgical skills.
The fellowships took place at the UZ Leuven hospital, Belgium under the supervision of Professor An Sermon. He participated in and observed various surgical procedures, in particular hip replacements which are complex procedures, and enjoyed learning about arthroscopic shoulder surgery ”“ a novelty for him.
Since his return to Laquintinie Hospital in Douala, Cameroon, where he is the head of the surgical department, he has noted with great satisfaction that many elements learned over the course of the fellowship influence his practice: whether it be operating room management, surgical tool sterilization or case management itself. He considers that he was able to better treat fractures of the proximal end of the humerus, the distal end of the radius and bone infections.
Fully satisfied with his experience, he is eager to apply his new skills: “I really learned a lot, and I can’t wait for Covid-19 to pass so that I can really put into practice the contributions of my fellowship, since activity has dropped dramatically.”
Dr Olama Atangana’s involvement with the AO Alliance continues beyond his fellowship as he has since become faculty for our educational events.