[The teaching of surgical specialties in France to foreign students: apropos of an inter-university specialty diploma in orthopedic surgery and traumatology].

Foreign doctors who wish to be specialised in a particular branch mainly register themselves for a D.I.S. (Specialised Inter-university Diploma). The curriculum to this diploma is described through its Orthopaedics and Traumatologic Surgery branch and its drawbacks are analysed, namely lack of strict selection at entrance, insufficient theoretical courses and specially lack of practical training. More over, figures concerning the first batch show a large number of students registered in the first year while only a few succeeded the final examination. The consequences of such a poor formation might be serious. Solutions are proposed after comparison with the organisations retained in other countries. Any reform should firstly describe the aims of this postgraduate educational programme to foreign students.