A general surgeon is a specialist doctor who has received education and training in preoperative, operative, and postoperative management of patient care. General surgeons need to be equipped with all sorts of information related to emergencies, intensive care, anatomy, metabolism, immunology, nutrition, pathology, physiology, shock & resuscitation and wound healing.
General surgery tends to be a varied specialty, where the activities of a general surgeon involve time in the operating room, office, emergency department and the intensive care unit. General surgical practice requires expertise in communication and collaboration, teaching and research, health care management and continuing professional development.
After completing medical school, to become a general surgeon requires an additional 5 years of training in a Royal College-approved program. Some schools offer a 6-year program, while others offer an optional PGY6 year. The resident must acquire a thorough knowledge of the theoretical basis of general surgery, including its foundations in the basic medical sciences and research. Training should incorporate the principle of graded increasing responsibility. This must include at least 36 months of general surgery rotations, of which at least one year must be spent as a senior or chief resident.