Important Notice (COVID-19)

Electives for International Students

Ophthalmology

For visiting elective students, all Ophthalmology elective requests must be made directly to the electives.med [at] mcgill.ca (subject: Ophthalmology%20Elective%20Request) (Visiting Students Office) at the Faculty of Medicine. For McGill students, all elective requests must be made through Ms. Natasha Lattimore at the Ophthalmology teaching office. At no time should a prospective elective student attempt to arrange an elective directly with a doctor.

Contact Information
Elective Chair Dr. D. Cheema Telephone (514) 934-1934, Local 44078
Coordinator Natasha Lattimore Telephone (514) 934-1934, Local 36789
Fax (514) 843-1624
E-mail ophrpc.med [at] mcgill.ca
Jewish General Hospital
Supervisor Dr. Chantal Ares
Montreal Children's Hospital
Supervisor Dr. Keonekoop
Centre académique de santé de l’œil de McGill/McGill Academic Eye Centre
Supervisor Dr. M. J. Discepola

This elective is offered to Clerkship students in the months of July through January. Special elective requests will be considered for periods from February through June due to high McGill student volume on the service. One student can be accepted at each hospital at any one time. McGill students are permitted to carry out a maximum total of 4-weeks of Ophthalmology electives.

The emphasis for this elective period is mainly clinical so that by the end of the rotation the student should be able to diagnose and treat most of the common eye problems.

Supervision will be by both staff and residents in the eye clinics. Emphasis is placed on learning to take a good history, measure the visual acuity and proficient use of the slit lamp and ophthalmoscope. There is an opportunity for the elective to observe/assist in eye surgery and to take an active part in clinical conferences/teaching rounds. Each hospital has self-teaching tape/slides covering the important aspects of ophthalmology. Textbooks are available within the department.

At the end of the elective, the student is required to make a 20-30 minute formal presentation to the hospital staff, residents and fellows. This presentation should be organized with the site supervisor at the hospital where his/her elective took place. This presentation will be graded and be a part of the student's global evaluation.

Back to top