Training Opportunities

The A.K. Prakash Foundational Fellowship in International Medicine

A generous gift from Toronto-based art enthusiast Ash Prakash to the Department of Surgery has enabled surgeons from resource-limited countries to gain experience in our academic health sciences centers. The surgeon may be a resident, clinical fellow, or visiting scholar and will be paired with a U of T faculty member. The training must include a period spent at U of T and encompass the areas of clinical surgery, education, and research. The knowledge and skills gained through their experience has profound life-saving effects on local communities when they return to their home countries. This unique gift facilitates knowledge transfer, builds local capacity and has immediate local impact.

Key figures and dates

• Proposals due: October 30^th, 2024
• Funding amount available: $40 000 (Hosting department or division to undertake covering half the cost)
• Fellowship start date: Between Jan 1 2025 and Dec 31 2026
• Length: 3 – 12 months

Evaluation Criteria

It is most important to design the right program for the trainee and country needs, and any well justified application will be considered. The following criteria are guidelines, not mandatory components.

• Scholarship recipient and sponsoring faculty surgeon are clearly identified.
• Educational objectives are explicit.
• Benefit of receiving the training in Toronto is clear.
• Strong preference if trainee is participating in direct patient care in Toronto with educational license
• Observership model discouraged
• Plans for return to home country/region and incorporation of training into career progression are described.
• Support from home program is documented.
• Host department in Toronto provides a portion of financial support.
• Patient population and benefit are identified
• Preference is given to applications supporting vulnerable or disadvantaged patient populations

Application Process

Please prepare the following and send to the attention of Maricar.aruta@sickkids.ca using the subject line: LINCSS Scholarships.

1. Letter of application (three page maximum) addressing the bullet points above
2. Budget and justification (one page)
3. Letter of support from host surgeon / division in Toronto
4. Letter of support from home country division / institution ​​​​​

Global Surgical Scholars Certificate Program

About

All residents and fellows are eligible to apply their choice of the Global Health Education Initiative (GHEI) or its subspecialty program, the Global Surgical Scholars Program. Both programs are led by U of T Postgraduate Medical Education. This program is designed to provide trainees in the Department of Surgery with an opportunity to learn about health equity, disparities, and healthcare delivery through a surgical lens, focusing on underserved populations at both a local and global level.

Structure

The GSSP combines didactic teaching, programmatic opportunities, networking, and real-world experience in the fields of global health and surgery. Scholars work with a surgical mentor within the Department to design a longitudinal, individualized program that meets their learning needs and career objectives. Program completion can be tailored to the learner’s schedule and requires successful completion of 6 core modules + 6 elective modules.

Contact

Judy Kopelow (j.kopelow@utoronto.ca)

General Surgical Oncology Fellowship

https://www.surgonc.org/fellows/surgical-oncology-fellowships/program-list/university-of-toronto/

About

The vision of the General Surgical Oncology fellowship at the University of Toronto is to train local, national and international leaders in surgical oncology through a two-year program. Fellows will work at two cancer centers with distinct yet complementary strengths: the Princess Margaret Comprehensive Cancer Centre, located in downtown Toronto, and the Edmond Odette Regional Cancer Centre at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, located uptown.

All rotations involve and emphasize interaction with colleagues in other oncologic disciplines in multidisciplinary clinics, tumor boards, rounds and in the operating theatre. It is also expected that fellows will complete at least one research project and that it is submitted to a major meeting and for publication and presented at the annual research day. The formal education program includes a weekly lecture and seminar series, a surgical ‘bootcamp’, and leadership course in conjunction with Rotman School of Management.

Application

We accept 4 fellows per year: 3 will enter the General Surgery Oncology track and 1 will enter the General Surgery Oncology and Heptobiliarypancreatic (HPB) track. All applicants (national and international) are interviewed and ranked through the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP) as two separate tracks. Successful applicants will have completed or anticipate completion of residency training in a recognized General Surgery training program.

Contacts

Program Directors: Nicole Look Hong, Anand Govindarajan

Program Manager: Jaime Burke (jaime.burke@uhn.ca)