One-Year Craniofacial Surgery Fellowship at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital

Abstract Residency trainings in oral and maxillofacial surgery, plastic surgery, or otolaryngology do not sufficiently cover all aspects of craniofacial surgery to enable fresh graduates to independently practice as craniofacial surgeons. Fellowship trainings are almost mandatory to gain added skills and knowledge in the subspecialty. There are limited number of fellowship centers around the globe that accept international fellows, provide an excellent hands-on experience, arrange free accommodation and pay stipend to the selected candidates. The author presents his critical review of 1-year craniofacial surgery fellowship at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan, sponsored by Noordhoff Craniofacial Foundation (NCF), during which he rotated in pediatric craniofacial surgery unit for five and half months, orthognathic surgery unit for 4 months and craniofacial trauma and reconstruction unit for two and half months. The surgical log is presented along with critical review of individual postings, pearls of the overall fellowship along with suggestions for interested candidates to join the fellowship.