Medical students all over the world will now be able to review surgical procedures online with the help of an initiative launched Tuesday, in part by Harvard Medical School.

The BeST Program (Basic electronic Surgical Training) will help prospective surgeons ease the strain of residency by allowing students to review procedures online. The new program offers education and time-saving advantages for students who use it.

“The program rolls up a textbook, exam review book and journal into one,” said Lecturer on Medicine Dr. Victoria Holliday, the director of the initiative.

The program is intended to be a resource for medical students in residency and it is not a substitute for medical school or for formal medical qualifications, Holliday said.

“The program is meant for external qualification exam,” said Holliday, “it provides training for people who are already physicians.”

BeST is the product of collaboration between Harvard Medical International, the international branch of HMS, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) and Intuition, an internet educational company.

“The program will globally level the playing field because people can get Harvard level training around the world,” Holliday said.

Those involved have high expectations for the program.

“Hopefully the program will improve the knowledge base of future surgeons and indirectly improve patient care,” she said.

Dr. William Silen, Johnson & Johnson Distinguised Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School recruited Medical School faculty to make sure the content was relevant for surgical practice in the United States.

Two versions of the program will be available, a Harvard Medical International version, geared for the U.S. surgical exam and an Irish-Commonwealth version that will be relevant for the Royal College exam.

BeST will be marketed to medical institutions, who will then be able to purchase it for use by residents. Though the price for the U.S. version is still undetermined, the program currently sells for 1,500 Euros or about $1,000.

Holliday said the initiative has met with a positive response. “The program allows the resident director to track the progress of the resident,” Holliday said. “BeST is also convenient because it is accessible anytime, anywhere, anyplace.”