Developing and refining a surgical curriculum.

Curriculum development is essential for any educational surgical program and can be accomplished by following the processes outlined in this report. The creation of any new curriculum begins with a needs assessment that identifies a distinct education problem which affects a targeted group of learners who will participate in the new curriculum. Once the need is defined clearly, the goals and objectives for the focused learning are created that define precisely what knowledge or skills the learner will have achieved by the end of this curriculum. After implementation, all curricula require assessment and evaluation. Assessments measure the ability of an individual learner to meet the defined learning objectives, and an evaluation examines the curriculum as a whole. Both are crucial tools for the refinement and perpetuation of a surgical curriculum to ensure that it adjusts with changing learning environments.