Dr. Leone and Vietnam Medical Team 2015
In March 2015 Andrew Leone, MD participated in IVUmed’s Resident Scholar Program, traveling to Hue, Vietnam. Dr. Leone was accompanied by a mentor, Lance Hampton, MD, an associate professor and the Director of Robotic Urology at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Mary Ellen, MD (PGY4) also participated in the week-long visit at the hospital. During his trip to Vietnam, Dr. Leone spent four days at the Hue Central Hospital, participating in several cases and observing a variety of techniques related to different surgeries. Additionally, Dr. Leone had the opportunity to attend a lecture given by Dr. Hampton at the local university and then present on one of his own unique cases to the Vietnamese urologists.
Regarding one particular case, Dr. Leone commented, “Open ureterolithotomy, 20-30 years ago, used to be the standard of care in the management of large ureteral stones. However, I have not seen a case during my entire 5 years of residency, let alone heard of anyone doing the operation. It was really amazing to see how it was done. The entire surgery took about 45 minutes and was impressive.” During his time in the operating room he observed, “Nothing was wasted. There was no such thing as disposable or single use. Everything was re-processed and reused including wires/stents/trocars.”
Reflecting on his overall experience, Dr. Leone reported, “Overall the trip exceeded my expectations and I was able to experience operating in a developing country with minimal resources and maximal efficiency of resource utilization. It was a tremendously valuable experience for me and the experience excited me about my hope in the future to regularly devote time to medical missions.”
Are you interested in becoming an IVUmed Traveling Resident Scholar? Apply today: https://www.ivumed.org/what-we-do/traveling-resident-scholars/
Dr. Andrew Leone in Vietnam