Jul 7 • SURGhub Team

Pin It to the Board: How Peer Mentorship Is Promoting Digital Surgical Education In Uganda

Digital platforms expand access to surgical training, but local barriers often stall adoption. In Uganda, a Gulu University team is bridging this gap. By pairing a notice board campaign with peer mentorship, they show how to turn registered users into engaged learners.

The Gulu University team holding SURGhub QR codes ahead of the notice board campaign — the starting point of a peer-led effort to turn platform access into active learning.
Empty space, drag to resize
The landscape of global surgical education is rapidly evolving, driven by platforms designed to democratise knowledge. In Uganda, a grassroots collective of medical students and early-career clinicians turned to SURGhub to help address local training inequities. 
Empty space, drag to resize
"The provision of learning resources is only the beginning of the surgical education journey"
Empty space, drag to resize
The platform offers access to surgical courses outside traditional classrooms. Yet, as this community and one of its leading mentors, Dr Eric Ssennuni, have found, introducing a digital tool into a new environment reveals a fundamental challenge: the provision of learning resources is only the beginning of the surgical education journey.
Dr Eric Ssennuni (central), with the two Gulu University student leaders -  John (right) and Anthony (left), during the first project brainstorming meeting.
Empty space, drag to resize
"Access and adoption are entirely different realities in resource-constrained settings"
Empty space, drag to resize
In Uganda, the local context presents complex, multifaceted challenges when it comes to access to surgical training. The grassroots team identified that access and adoption are not the same in resource-constrained settings, particularly when motivational and navigational barriers are left unaddressed. 

Confronted with over 140 available courses, a student logging on for the first time can easily feel paralysed rather than empowered. As Eric notes, “In theory, anyone with a smartphone can access SURGhub, but in practice, access and adoption are two entirely different things.”
Empty space, drag to resize
"Active peer mentorship bridges the gap between access and adoption"
Empty space, drag to resize
To overcome these local hurdles, the collective launched the “Pin It to the Notice Board” project, placing SURGhub QR codes across university and hospital notice boards to bring resources directly into the daily paths of students. Rather than relying solely on visibility, the team accompanied learners through the initial onboarding process.

They organised virtual and in-person sessions, providing guidance on platform navigation and offline app usage. Eric explains this approach: “It was at this point that we realised that access through the QR codes was just an invitation—navigational guidance and support were needed to turn this invitation into a learning commitment.” By establishing the Global Surgery Northern Start Mentorship Programme (GSNSMP), the team demonstrates how active peer mentorship bridges the gap between access and adoption.
Anthony pinning a SURGhub QR code to a notice board at Gulu University Faculty of Medicine.
Empty space, drag to resize
"Success lies in cultivating engaged learners"
Empty space, drag to resize
The key takeaway from this Ugandan initiative is that a global educational platform only reaches its potential through local adaptation. Establishing a digital repository is a necessary first step, but its value depends on communities being supported in navigating their specific barriers.

By pairing digital access with peer mentorship, the Gulu University collective showed that success means more than creating accounts. Colleagues who once hesitated are now engaging in clinical discussions with greater confidence. Groups that used the platform before hands-on sessions performed more cohesively during trauma resuscitation simulations. An initial registration, with the right support, can be the start of a long-term path for professional development.
John walking students through the SURGhub QR code during an on-the-spot onboarding session — turning a notice board campaign into a direct conversation.
Empty space, drag to resize
What comes next
Empty space, drag to resize
The second cohort of the Global Surgery Northern Start Mentorship Programme is currently running, with over 60 mentees from medical schools across Uganda and neighbouring countries. The team is also working to bring the notice board campaign to more medical schools and teaching hospitals across Uganda. As Eric puts it: "We envision a future where access to digital surgical education paired with human mentorship is not a novelty, but a standard fixture for every pre- and in-service healthcare professional in Uganda and beyond."
Empty space, drag to resize

Eric's recommended course
Navigating the Global Surgery Ecosystem


Topic
: Global Surgery and how to navigate it.

Description: The course aims to empower frontline providers with knowledge and understanding of the global surgery landscape so they can effectively navigate and leverage it to meet local needs and ultimately inform and re-focus global surgery priorities.

"Access to digital surgical education paired with human mentorship should be a standard fixture — not a novelty."

— Dr Eric Ssennuni 

About this Story

This article is part of our Spotlight series, exploring how communities around the world are putting SURGhub into practice. Each story looks at the people and initiatives working to make quality surgical education accessible where it is needed most.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the individuals featured and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, position, or standpoint of SURGhub or its partner organisations.
 SURGhub is a joint initiative of
 Supported by
In association with
Global Surgery Foundation
United Nations Institute for Training and Research
RCSI Institute for Global Surgery
Johnson & Johnson Foundation
Empty space, drag to resize

Explore New Courses

Explore the courses powering SURGhub’s growing global community of learners.