The McGill MIS fellowship includes a diverse exposure to clinical surgery and an opportunity to develop academic skills. The fellowship program is accredited by the Fellowship Council - https://fellowshipcouncil.org/ .
The clinical program is divided into foregut, solid organ and colorectal surgery sections. The academic exposure focuses on education and outcomes research, with the opportunity to pursue basic science or physiology projects if desired.
The goals of the fellowship are to acquire the knowledge and technical skills required to treat a broad range of digestive surgical conditions using advanced minimally invasive surgery, and to acquire the research and educational skills to contribute in an academic institution. There is an opportunity for the fellow to obtain an advanced degree including a Masters of Science in Experimental Surgery, a Masters of Science in Epidemiology, or in Education.
The MIS center includes a well-equipped inanimate skills lab on site with both physical and virtual reality systems to learn and evaluate MIS skills. Other courses are held at the McGill University Faculty of Medicine Simulation Centre, an ACS-accredited educational institute. The fellow has access to digital video editing software and technical support at the MIS centre and the Henry K.M.de Kuyper Education Centre at the Montreal General Hospital. There is an extensive library of print and multimedia material for the fellow to access, and there is a computer network with access to a variety of online electronic publications and search engines. We have a full time coordinator for the MIS center, a full-time research assistant and administrative support of our academic mission. We also have outstanding support from a multimedia technician.
Funding is provided for the fellow to attend the annual SAGES meeting, and other meetings where he or she has a presentation on the scientific program. There is also funding for the fellow to visit other centers in order to gain exposure to a unique clinical experience not available at McGill.
Patients are followed in prospective registries, enabling outcomes research. We have a multidisciplinary group studying the process of surgical recovery and its optimization, including novel approaches such as prehabilitation and the role of enhanced recovery pathways. There are four new MIS operating rooms equipped with digital image collection and archiving, and video-conferencing capabilities.
In addition to a large clinical experience in advanced MIS procedures, McGill University has developed a strong academic program. We are equipped and funded to train not only clinically skilled surgeons, but also academic leaders of the future. We have the resources and committed faculty to enable all the goals of the fellows to be met. The MIS centre at McGill University has been a leader in educational research, simulator development and evaluation, and outcomes research. We work with dedicated senior anesthesia faculty who share our goal of academic excellence, and have a fellowship in MIS-anesthesia. There is strong interdisciplinary collaboration with gastroenterology, transplant medicine, hematology, endocrinology, urology, thoracic surgery and pediatric surgery. We have invested in creating a group of dedicated and highly motivated nurses with special interest in MIS to work with us closely in the operating rooms and in the MIS centre. The opportunity to supplement clinical training with a well-recognized academic degree is also an attractive aspect of doing a MIS fellowship at McGill.
The fellow must be eligible for licensure (as a trainee) in the Province of Quebec. Application for the fellowship is through the Advanced GI Surgery Fellowship Match (www.fellowshipcouncil.org).
Information regarding eligibility for training at McGill for non-Canadian applicants can be found here.
- Primary Program Site: McGill University Health Centre Hospitals
- Secondary Program Sites: Sir Mortimer B. Davis Jewish General Hospital and St Mary's Hospital
- University Affiliation: McGill University
- Year Program Established: 1997
- % of Program Clinical: 70
- % of Program Research: 30
MIS fellowship faculty laparoscopic case volumes (excludes cholecystectomy, appendectomy and diagnostic laparoscopy) - 754 cases (January 1 2011- December 31 2011):
Finally, the McGill MIS program is based in Montreal, one of the most cosmopolitan and beautiful cities in North America. Montreal is consistently rated as one of the cities in North America with the highest quality of life.
Please address all inquiries about MIS fellowship program to Administrative Assistant Maria Cortese - maria.cortese [at] muhc.mcgill.ca
