Dear Colleagues

The process for medical student participation in African Perioperative Research Group (APORG) research
projects

It is fantastic to have so many medical students indicating an interest in participating in ASOS-Paeds. The African
Perioperative Research Group (APORG) is an inclusive research collaborative across Africa, and we therefore
welcome the participation of medical students in all projects.

However, we do need to ensure that we respect the clinician leaders of the various units and departments in
the hospitals participating in APORG research, as these clinicians are ultimately responsible for the regulation
and integrity of all the research within their units and departments.

The process therefore for medical student participation in ASOS-Paeds is the following:

1. The names of all medical students indicating a willingness to participate in ASOS-Paeds will be shared with the
National Leader, who can share with the Hospital Leaders.

2. The Hospital Leaders can then choose to invite the medical students to participate as investigators at their
site.

3. If a medical student is invited to participate by the Hospital Leader, the student will then be invited to register
online as an ASOS-Paeds investigator at the site. Once the online registration is complete, the medical student
will then be confirmed as part of the ASOS-Paeds study.

The process for the medical student to follow if there is no hospital leader at their hospital site:

1. The medical student should try to find a senior doctor within the study discipline i.e. anaesthesia, surgery or
paediatric surgery, who is willing to be considered for the role of Hospital Leader.

2. The name of the potential Hospital Leader should then be communicated to the National Leader, who will
then decide whether to confirm the proposed individual as the Hospital Leader. All Hospital Leaders have to be
confirmed by the National Leader, before they can assume the role of Hospital Leader. The contact details of the
National Leader can be found on the website (www.asos.org.za).

Finally, we would encourage all Hospital Leaders to include medical students who have indicated a willingness
to participate in ASOS-Paeds, in their team of investigators. The participation of medical students will increase
the capacity of sites to deliver the study, and it will grow a research culture in Africa. We therefore support the
participation of medical students in ASOS-Paeds and other APORG projects. However, the ultimate decision of
including medical students at a study site is decided by the Hospital Leader. The Hospital Leader will decide
which medical students will participate at their site, and we will respect these decisions of the Hospital Leader.

We look forward to working with all of you. Thank you again for supporting ASOS-Paeds.

Regards

Bruce Biccard