General Surgeon (Medical Specialist)

Canadian Armed Forces; Yellowknife, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu; On-site; CAD 200,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Join the Canadian Armed Forces as a General Surgeon, providing advanced surgical care to military personnel both domestically and abroad. This role offers a unique opportunity to lead surgical teams, mentor fellow health professionals, and engage in humanitarian missions worldwide. Enjoy a competitive pay and benefits package, along with exceptional training and support in a challenging yet rewarding environment.

Benefits

Competitive Compensation Package

Career Development Opportunities

Qualifications

• Medical practitioners holding an unrestricted license in General Surgery.
• Membership in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide surgical consultation for CAF members in Canada and internationally.
• Lead a surgical team caring for injured patients in varied environments.
• Educate and advise on trauma and general surgery care.

Skills

Leadership

Surgical Skills

Trauma Care

Education

Medical Degree

Royal College Certification in General Surgery

Job description

As a member of the military, General Surgeons belong to the Medical Specialist occupationin the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and provide trauma and general surgical care for CAF members, whether at a Canadian Forces Health Services Clinics/operating theatres or overseas in support of peacekeeping or humanitarian missions.

As a member of the military, General Surgeons belong to the Medical Specialist occupationin the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and provide trauma and general surgical care for CAF members, whether at a Canadian Forces Health Services Clinics/operating theatres or overseas in support of peacekeeping or humanitarian missions. They have the opportunity to be a leader within the CAF Health Services, as well as mentor and educator to other Health Services personnel, including Medical Officers, Nursing Officers, Physician Assistants as well as Medical, Operating Room and Diagnostic Technicians.

Their primary responsibilities are to:

• Provide surgical consultation for Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Members in Canada and deployed internationally;
• Lead a surgical or emergent care team caring for injured and ill patients in Canada and in deployed settings, internationally;
• Educate and advise multidisciplinary teams on trauma and general surgery care;
• Maintain a high level of surgical skills, by holding a position within a civilian health care facility ; and
• Contribute to the development and application of health care policies within the CAF.

Work environment

General Surgeons in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) maintain their clinical readiness by being embedded as staff in tertiary care civilian hospitals across Canada, working alongside their civilian colleagues. Part of their time may be spent providing consultative services to support Primary Care Clinicians at Canadian Forces Health Services Clinics in Canada. Participation in education and training tasks, as well as research opportunities, occur nationally and internationally.
They belong to 1 Canadian Field Hospital and maintain their operational readiness by participating in annual military skills training and field exercises. When required, they will be called upon to deploy to unique and challenging clinical environments as part of a Health Services team on domestic and international operations.

If you chose a career in theRegular Force, upon completion of all required training, you will be assigned to your first base. While there is some flexibility with regards to postings (relocations), accommodations can’t always be made, and therefore, you can likely expect to move at some point in your career. However, if you decide to join the Primary Reserve Force, you will do so through a specific Reserve unit. Outside of training, your chosen Reserve unit will be your workplace on a part time basis, and you will not be obligated to relocate to a different base. As part of the Primary Reserve Force, you typically work one night per week and some weekends as a minimum with possibilities of full-time employment.

Career Overview

Transcript

TITLE:

General Surgeon (Medical Specialist)

My name is Lieutenant-Colonel Andrew Beckett, I am the Chief of General Surgery for the Canadian Forces and the Trauma Advisor to the Surgeon General.

I dropped out of high school when I was 18 years old, from Stouffville, Ontario, and I joined the Canadian Forces out of Toronto as a Medical Technician. I had no idea that I was going to become a physician, and then surgeon, then the Chief of General Surgery for the Canadian Forces – and the only person that’s more surprised than me is my dad.

The most rewarding experience I had was looking after Canadian and allied casualties in Kandahar, Afghanistan. This was at the height of the Afghan involvement and we were seeing about 8 to 10 critically injured patients per afternoon. And these type of injuries, from high-explosive and high-velocity gunshot wounds were, you know, injuries that we never ever see in the civilian world, and I learned how to manage those injuries on a routine basis.

And that’s why, you know, I can see any trauma patient in a Canadian hospital and I know how to manage it, because I’ve seen war trauma. And that’s a rare skill that many civilians will never ever come in contact with.

Many of the surgeons that were in Afghanistan, they’ve all gone on to being directors of trauma programs, or taking on leadership positions in the civilian world, so it’s a very elite group of people that you’ll be joining.

You’re going to have the experience of a lifetime. You’re going to travel, you’re going to serve your country overseas, you’re going to be at the peak of your surgical training, and you’re going to be able to sell those skills in the civilian world and join a very elite group of Canadian Forces surgeons.

You never know what the Canadian Forces can do for you. So if they can turn a high school dropout into a trauma surgeon working at a Level 1 trauma centre in Toronto and the Chief of General Surgery, just think about what it can do for you.

Pay and Benefits

A competitive compensation and benefits package is available for this medical specialization. Contact a Health Services Specialist Recruiter to learn more: [e-mail]

If you are a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and have an unrestricted licence to practise in General Surgery in a Canadian province or territory, you may be eligible for enrolment and to commence basic training.

Currently, the Canadian Armed Forces supports clinicians who practice in the following Surgical sub-specialties:

Critical Care Medicine

Vascular Surgery

To find out more information or to apply to the CAF as a General Surgeon you can contact our recruiters at:

Please indicate in the subject line of your e-mail: MEDICAL SPECIALIST