Recommendation for Curriculum Change of Clinical Clerkship (JURSI) Program in Surgery in the College of Medicine, University Of Saskatchewan
For consideration by Clinical Skills and Professionalism Subcommittee
September 23, 2008
Background Information:
At present the clinical clerkship program in Surgery for our medical students consists of 4 weeks of General Surgery, and 4 weeks of “selectives” in the surgical specialties, besides 2 weeks each of Anesthesia and Emergency Medicine/Trauma (for a total of 12 weeks). The 4 weeks of “selectives” include any of the surgical specialties, i.e. cardiac, ENT, plastic, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, general surgery, pediatric surgery and urology. A very small minority choose to spend their selective period in general surgery. Of note, students have a total of 13 weeks of electives time, during which they are free to spend as much time as they wish in any surgical specialty of their choosing.
Goals and principles of an undergraduate education in Surgery:
(see Br.J.Surg 77: 4:822-823; Surgery 21: 5:1-2; Can J. Surg 49: 5: 314 – 315)
The physician is to be released to the public - he/she must be a SAFE practitioner.
The goal is the preparation of the “undifferentiated practitioner.” Career specialization is after graduation.
Common surgical conditions and principles of management and basic surgical skills.
To pass on to the student, the excitement and satisfaction of our specialty
General Surgery is the essential surgical specialty environment in which the goals of an undergraduate surgical education can best be achieved:
Since the goal is the preparation of the “undifferentiated practitioner” and since career specialization is a postgraduate exercise, it behooves us as surgical educators, to train the medical student in general surgical principles and in basic surgical skills and to equip them for the safe practice of these skills, no matter what specialty they choose after graduation.
General surgery is the environment in which these skills can best be taught and learned. The present 4 weeks of general surgery is too short for an adequate experience of these basic surgical principles and the learning of these basic surgical skills.
Recommendation:
Following discussion at the Undergraduate Surgery Committee, the Faculty Meeting of the Dept of Surgery and with the Head of the Dept of Surgery, we recommend that the General surgery section of the clinical clerkship should be increased from the present 4 weeks, to 6 weeks. This will leave 2 weeks for selectives, instead of the present 4 weeks. Anesthesia and Emergency Medicine/Trauma will remain the same at two weeks each.
Respectfully submitted,
Dr. F. Christian FRCSEd, FRCSC
Clinical Associate Professor of Surgery,
Program Director, Undergraduate Surgery,
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon