First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Dr Pushpinder Bajaj, Dr Lalit Maini and team ISKSAA, for giving me such an amazing opportunity. I was awarded ISKSAA travelling Aberdeen fellowship of 2 weeks in ISKSAA Global Summit Nov, 2016, held in Delhi.

My special thanks to my mentor of the programme, Mr Kapil Kumar (Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, NHS, Woodend hospital, Aberdeen), who even before the beginning of my fellowship programme, helped me wholeheartedly with my queries related to visa, invitation letter, accommodation, etc. Finally the day arrived (I was so excited for my first international fellowship), 2^nd April 2017 Sunday, I landed at Aberdeen airport and spoke to Mr Kapil Kumar, who arranged my conveyance to Woodend Hospital. On my way, the cab driver gave a short tour of the city and it was breathtaking. After reaching the staff home, where our stay was arranged, I met Dr Gopalakrishna , my co- fellow in the fellowship programme, Dr Samarth Mittal , who was working there as international fellow for an year and some more Indian fellows. As we were new to this place, Dr Samarth Mittal helped us a lot with everything. Then, Mr Kapil Kumar visited us in the afternoon and took us to the beach along the North Sea. Inspite of being a sunny day, the breeze along the beach was cold. We instantly fell in love with the place. Then, Mr Kapil sir gave us a brief introduction about our 2 weeks programme, timings, work culture and schedule.

The next day (Monday), our fellowship programme started and we were constantly posted with Mr Kumar in woodend hospital including theatres, clinic and ward rounds. He made his best efforts to organize our schedule in such a manner that we could come across almost every possible shoulder surgeries including arthroscopy, arthroplasty and trauma. He is a great teacher and so humble, that he answered my almost every query, both in theatres and clinics.

During the programme, we attended six theatres and observed following surgeries which were both unique and well accomplished: Arthroscopic Rotator cuff repair, Arthroscopic Bankart Repair, Arthroscopic Sub acromial decompression, Arthroscopic removal of calcific deposits, Laterjet procedure, Nonunion Fracture clavicle fixed with anatomical contoured plate, Chronic AC joint disruption treated with Arthrex dog bone technique, Total and Reverse total shoulder arthroplasty, Total elbow Arthroplasty, Fractures of proximal and distal humerus, and some hand surgeries. Although, all the surgeries were brilliantly performed, the best surgery I observed was an irrepairable rotator cuff tear managed arthroscopically by superior capsular reconstruction. Before each and every case, Mr Kumar used to tell us about the pre operative plan, the approach and make us read about the procedures new to us, for eg. Total Shoulder Arthroplasty( SHORT STEM implant), Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty (INVERSE type), and Human Skin Graft for Superior capsular Reconstruction. Moreover, intra operatively, Mr Kumar taught us tips and tricks of shoulder surgeries, being it from simple procedures to advanced surgeries. He never said No to our any question. I think he is one of the most skillful and modest orthopedic surgeon I have ever come across. Furthermore, he trained me in thorough and quick examination of shoulder and amplified my diagnostic proficiency. The understanding and knowledge, I acquired in shoulder & upper limb subspecialty in Aberdeen through this fellowship, have surely enhanced both my surgical and clinical skills. Besides, the entire academic feast we had there, we also explored the city of Aberdeen (The Granite city). Mr Kumar with his family also took us out for dinner and we had a wonderful time together. In addition, I along with other Indian fellows rented a car, during weekend, and drove till “Isle of Skye” (The Heaven on earth). It was so amazing and startling; the weather was chilly and drizzly, with striking scenic views. During our road trip, we also visited, legendary and astonishing Castles, Lochness, Inverness, Stonehaven and the famous distillery of Glenlivet scotch. On my way back to India, I visited Edinburgh and London as well.

Thus, my fellowship to Aberdeen was packed with both education and fun. I wish I could get a long term fellowship there, so that I could not only enhance my clinical approach and surgical expertise, but also explore more of places there. I really loved the time I spent there, met such nice people, made good friends and accumulated tons of stunning memories.

At last, I would again like to thank Dr Pushpinder Bajaj, Dr Lalit Maini, Mr Kapil Kumar and team ISKSAA for giving such a wonderful opportunity, which has boosted up my clinical skills, knowledge and also my approach towards Shoulder ailments.

Looking forward for another extraordinary fellowship with ISKSAA.