Table 4

Sustainable characteristics of short-term missions

Authors (year)	Years	Number and frequency	Long-term relationship				Teaching objective				Advancement of local staff			Quality follow-up and sustainable characteristics†
Authors (year)	Years	Number and frequency	Consecutive missions to the same country	Consecutive missions to the same region/city	Consecutive missions with (part of the) same team	Partnership	Training local staff	Lectures /workshops /education	Advice on logistics within healthcare system	Encouraging medical independence of local staff	Participation of local staff in surgical care and pre-op and/or post-op care	Fellowship abroad	Providing medical supplies	Studies that reported both on follow-up details and sustainable characteristics
Aziz et al (2009)27	2006–2008	3 (annual)	✓		✓	✓	✓				✓
Bello et al (2018)28	2011–2017	17	✓	✓			✓				✓			■
Baran et al (2007)29			✓	✓	✓		✓	✓		✓	✓	✓	✓
Bermudez et al (2009)30	2007					✓					✓
Borghese et al (2005)31	2002–2003		✓
Bouman et al (2010)32	2007–2008	4 (biannual)	✓											■
Calis et al (2016)33	2009–2014	6 (annual)	✓	✓	✓						✓		✓
Daniels et al (2016)34			✓		✓									◊
El Ezzi et al (2017)35	2002–2011	9 (biannual)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓		✓		✓	✓	✓	◊
Fayyaz et al (2015)36	2004–present	130	✓	✓	✓						✓		✓
Figus et al (2009)37	1988–present	47	✓				✓	✓		✓	✓
Fuzaylov et al (2015)38	2011–2013	3 (annual)	✓	✓		✓	✓	✓			✓		✓
Guneren et al (2015)40	2007–2014	27			✓						✓		✓
Hughes et al (2012)43	1996–2011	16 (annual)	✓			✓								■
MacIntosh et al (2013)46	1993–present	(biannual)	✓				✓				✓
Madsen et al (2015)47	2005–2009	(annual)	✓	✓				✓			✓			◊
Maine et al (2012)49	2000–2005					✓								◊
Marck et al (2010)50	2007–2008	2 (annual)	✓	✓	✓									■
McClenaghan et al (2013)51	2012		✓	✓										■
McQueen et al (2007)53	2005							✓			✓
Merrel et al (2007)54	1990–2004	11	✓	✓			✓	✓				✓
Moon et al (2012)55	2007–2010	4 (annual)	✓				✓	✓		✓	✓		✓
Navarro (2015)56	1994–2014	141 (10 annually)	✓											■
Park et al (2018)39	2010–2011	2	✓	✓		✓	✓		✓	✓	✓			■
Rivera et a l (2013)58	2007	1									✓			◊
de Buys Roessingh et al (2012)16	1993–2008	(annual)				✓	✓	✓	✓			✓	✓	◊
Rossell-Perry et al (2015)60	2002–2012		✓	✓	✓	✓	✓							◊
Uemura et al (2015)64	1988–2008	458	✓						✓		✓			■
Uetani et al (2006)65	1993–2003		✓	✓			✓				✓		✓
			Reported by 23 studies	Reported by 13 studies	Reported by 9 studies	Reported by 9 studies	Reported by 13 studies	Reported by 8 studies	Reported by 4 studies	Reported by 4 studies	Reported by 18 studies	Reported by 4 studies	Reported by 9 studies	Reported by 15 studies (75%) of all 20 studies that reported on follow-up details

In order to determine whether or not missions were sustainable, the data were collected and allocated to three groups, ie, building long-term relationships, teaching objectives during the mission and the advancement of local staff. Each sustainability group is divided into different subsets. A checkmark (✓) means the study describes the concomitant form of sustainable health care.
*Part of the Operation Smile International (OSI) programme.
†Added to this table were studies that reported both on sustainable27 28 characteristics and on quality of follow-up (including length and rate of follow-up and complication rate). Eight studies with follow-up shorter than 180 days (■ marks), seven studies with follow-up29 30 up longer than 180 days (◊ marks). Five studies reported on quality of follow-up, but did not report on sustainable characteristics.