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Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery is concerned with the musculoskeletal system of the human body. Practice seeks to provide quality care to patients, which includes assessment, management, surgical and non-surgical treatment, and follow up care and rehabilitation. The term Orthopaedic comes from the Greek work ‘ortho’ which means ‘correct’ or ‘straight’, and ‘pais,’ which means child. Historically, orthopaedics frequently applied to the care of crippled children with spine or limb deformities, however, nowadays, it applies to both the paediatric and adult population, involves many subspecialty areas, and importantly, management of trauma and emergencies. T&O is underpinned by the basic sciences, including anatomy and pathology of the musculoskeletal system (including the bones, joints, ligaments, tendons and nerves). It looks at biomechanics and motion, materials and engineering, immunology and inflammation, neurovascular conditions, pharmacology, radiology and other investigations. Common orthopaedic medical conditions include musculoskeletal trauma, infections, cancers and tumours, congenital disorders, degenerative diseases, and sports injuries. This field of medicine demands medical competency in clinical assessment and patient management, and surgical expertise to perform a range of procedures and provide pre-operative, intra operative, and post operative care. Speciality areas include: Hand and Wrist, Shoulder and Elbow, Spine, Hip, Knee, Foot and Ankle, and two non-anatomical areas - Paediatric Orthopaedics and Major Trauma. Services include elective and emergency T&O, x-ray and medical imaging, nursing care, and connection to other OT, physio and rehabilitation services. T&O is practiced in hospitals and private clinics. It involves both inpatient and outpatient care, multidisciplinary teams, and collaboration between Orthopaedic surgeons and other medical, nursing, and allied health practitioners.

Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery (T&O) Jobs

T&O Surgeons specialise in preventing, diagnosing and treating disorders and injuries of the bone, ligaments, tendons, muscles and joints. They treat all ages, and some choose to specialise in one area of the body such as the hands or spine. They treat emergency and traumatic conditions, and congenital and acquired conditions such as arthritis, bone tumours, osteoporosis, carpal tunnel syndrome, bone fractures and sports injuries. They order radiological and medical imaging, diagnose conditions, and provide surgical, as well as non-surgical, treatment of the musculoskeletal system. Orthopaedic surgery a competitive surgical specialty. To pursue a career as an Orthopaedic Surgeon, doctors complete foundation, core and surgical core training, followed by T&O training, which takes six years and leads to a CCT and specialty registration with the GMC.

Nurses (Orthopaedics) in this field work in orthopaedic and bone/fracture clinics in hospitals. They remove and set casts, care for wounds, educate and support patients, and work within the wider health care team providing care for people with orthopaedic conditions.