General surgery
General surgery is a surgical specialty that focuses on alimentary canal and abdominal contents including the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, appendix and bile ducts, and often the thyroid gland. General surgeons also deal with diseases involving the skin, breast, soft tissue, trauma, peripheral artery disease and hernias and perform endoscopic as such as gastroscopy, colonoscopy and laparoscopic procedures.
This article is about the surgical specialty. For goregrind band, see General Surgery (band).Occupation
- Physician
- Surgeon
- Master of Surgery (M.S.)
- Doctor of Medicine (M.D.)
- Doctor of Osteopathic medicine (D.O.)
- Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.)
- Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB)
Trends[edit]
In the 2000s, minimally invasive surgery became more prevalent. Considerable enthusiasm has been built around robot-assisted surgery (also known as robotic surgery), despite a lack of data suggesting it has significant benefits that justify its cost.[3]
Training[edit]
In Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States general surgery is a five to seven year residency and follows completion of medical school, either MD, MBBS, MBChB, or DO degrees. In Australia and New Zealand, a residency leads to eligibility for Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. In Canada, residency leads to eligibility for certification by and Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, while in the United States, completion of a residency in general surgery leads to eligibility for board certification by the American Board of Surgery or the American Osteopathic Board of Surgery which is also required upon completion of training for a general surgeon to have operating privileges at most hospitals in the United States.
In the United Kingdom, surgical trainees may apply to enter training after five years of medical school and two years of the Foundation Programme. During the two year core surgical training programme ("phase 1"), doctors are required to sit the Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons (MRCS) examination. On award of the MRCS by one of the four surgical colleges, surgeons may hold the title 'Mister' or 'Miss/Ms./Mrs' rather than doctor. This tradition dates back hundreds of years in the United Kingdom from when only physicians attended medical school and surgeons did not, but were rather associated with barbers in the Barber Surgeon's Guild. The tradition is also present in many Commonwealth countries including New Zealand and some states of Australia. After completion of phase 1 training, trainees may apply for a nationally awarded Higher Surgical Training (HST) programme, which lasts six years and is now divided into two further phases (phases 2 and 3). Trainees are expected to declare a sub-specialty before the end of phase 2, and training during phase 3 focusses on that sub-specialty. Before the end of HST, the examination for Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons (FRCS) must be taken in general surgery plus the subspeciality. Upon completion of training, the surgeon will be eligible for entry on the GMC Specialist Register. They may then apply to work both in the NHS and independent sector as a consultant surgeon, although many trainees complete further fellowships.[4] The implementation of the European Working Time Directive limited UK surgical residents to an average 48-hour working week.[5]