The Turkish Hepatopancreatobiliary Surgery Association (THPBSA) is one of the most active national associations under the European-African HPB Surgery Association (E-AHPBA), with 885 members and various scientific, academic, and educational activities (https://www.hpb.org.tr/index.php). Turkish HPB Virtual School (THPBVS) was an educational project of THPBSA, which is a completely free online school with over 1,400 registered students from 67 cities. The presentation of this school in the 15th Biennial Congress of the European-African Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association in Lyon, France, and won the “Best Free Paper Presentation Award”.

Reasons Behind the International HPB Virtual School Concept

Following TVD's national and international success, the vision to create an International School with the same concept emerged.

The idea of virtual schools emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic. The negative impact of the pandemic varied considerably between different countries. In the surgical field, the pandemic has particularly disrupted the training of young professionals, including those training in complex fields such as HPB surgery. This situation has stimulated the THPBSA. Meanwhile, this global crisis has also provided opportunities, such as the rise of the online meeting culture, which facilitated the establishment of a virtual school. Distance learning became an effective tool to bridge the training gap caused by the deficit. The unexpected increase in applications and the enthusiasm of young surgeons for innovative training models facilitated the realization of the school.

After receiving the E-AHPBA support, the necessary steps for the realization of the school started to be taken.

Preparations for the school started in September 2024 and continued until May 2025. During this time, the curriculum and program were created.

An official website of the school was created (May 2025) and the school started after the announcements.