At a surgical course, the surgeons at the front of the room often learn as much as anyone in it. This is because teaching peers means explaining not only how you approach a case, but why, which often makes your own thinking clearer.
One such course was the NHG Shoulder Arthroscopy and Arthroplasty Course 2026, held from 7 to 9 October at the Surgical Sciences Training Centre (SSTC) at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), where Dr Lester Tan served as course chair. Over the three days, he drew on his experience as a fellowship trainer to guide participants through some of the procedures commonly performed for shoulder conditions.
Learning Through Small Groups and Cadaveric Workshops
The course focused on shoulder instability, rotator cuff repair, and shoulder arthroplasty, or shoulder replacement, which Dr Lester Tan and the rest of the faculty taught through small group sessions and hands-on cadaveric workshops. In the small groups, attendees could work through clinical questions and ask why one approach might be chosen over another, rather than only watching a technique being demonstrated. The cadaveric workshops then let them perform the techniques themselves, putting these discussions into practice. Because they were fellow surgeons, the questions they raised in both formats also drew on their own experience of similar cases.
From Teaching to Treatment Decisions
Answering these questions also gave Dr Lester Tan a chance to test his own thinking. Each time he hears how participants and fellow faculty would manage the same problem, he can compare their approaches with his own, which helps sharpen his clinical judgement. As advances in shoulder surgery techniques and implants continue to emerge, the same exchanges help keep his treatment decisions in step with the field.
In clinic, these are often the same decisions his patients at Oxford Orthopaedics face, such as whether to have surgery at all and, if so, whether the joint can be preserved or needs to be replaced. In helping them weigh each one, he draws on his experience and what he gains from discussing cases with other orthopaedic specialists. If you’d like to talk through these options for your shoulder, contact us to book an appointment.
